i am not fruit designs

This is what I do

2011-04-20T11:32:00.003-05:00

I am working at a big digitally focused agency as an account executive.
I have learned a lot about digital work- building websites, processes, etc. I have been very impressed at the skills of a lot of people. I am about to get some new business clients- who will have some video work. Perhaps producing would be a good use of my skillset/experience.
I have been spanning time with a wonderful, intelligent, talented, funny, attractive man. Who doesn't really want to date me. I wish my story were better, but it is not. I do not know who I am with him.
It will work itself out, one way or another, although I am pretty sure I know which way it will work itself out.
I have been doing a fair amount of animating and editing freelance- I was laid off from my previous job in Dec. I got to edit some comedic webmercials for Reverie Mattresses, and I animated some Mega Millions TV spots which were very fun but poorly managed so I think I ended up making about $2 an hour. I need to be better about sitting down at my computer after work and doing some digital creative work. It makes me happy when I do it.
I have zippers and found tutorials to make pouches, and vintage fabric to make them out of.
I have gotten out of shape. I am considering the Y. Biking and bball will help, but I think a constant structured pattern of exercise would help. Productivity in general, but also my muffin top overflow.
I make cheesecakes often. I seldom eat much of them.
I am quitting smoking, although I have found my commitment fails when I have had a drink.
I still make resin jewelry, and am applying for the Powderhorn Community tent. Still stocked at the Design Collective and I Like You. Also- Evolution salon in LynLake stocked my gem/chain stuff for awhile- they are such lovely people, and hopefully they will want me back someday soon- I need to sort through all my findings to liquidate that stock.
Other projects include a wedding edit it has taken me a year to complete, crocheting my friend theresa a hat in a specific color of yellow, a few resin projects for friends, mending, organizing and simplifying my life, and planter gardening in the 2nd story foyer of my apartment building. Hello current tomato plants. I started you from seeds, there you are....
All my ferns are dying, I can't seem to make them happy. I watched all of Pushing Up Daisies recently, and just started Glee. Oh.. TV.
I have also been reading a lot of fashion blogs. I could have a fashion blog about how I don't know what I am doing. It would be a cry for help. If only my life or fashion were really interesting enough to blog about.
more coffee....

How long its been.

2008-10-30T14:55:00.002-05:00

I seemed to have forgotten you, lonely blog. I remembered you when I happened upon an old acquaintance's blogger site, left a comment and blogger recognized. Of course, once I snapped out of my dreamlike state of blog fugue, I ran straight back to you blog.
In my last blog, in the last installment of my blog-- I was about to go to WBL- that show was a bit of a bust. I don't think I will do that one again. Handmaidens was brilliant as always.
I am in another craft sale this December.
I am moving and in a wedding this weekend and I feel.....bad. I feel stressed. I have too many things. Since I make things in my habitat, it is like moving a studio and an apartment. It involves logistics as to where my cat, finches, guinea pig, plants, perishable food items, etc go for the 2 days that I am homeless. It involves a wedding, and drinking and dressing in a ridiculous getup and then getting down.
And there is social upheaval and some insecurity. Dear blog, I didn't tell you but I buzzed my hair. it is the at-home 10 year old boy cut. years, years until... YEARS until I have long hair again.
I have found many hats to wear.
I have missed you blog. more in a week or so. I might even mention crafts....

Crafted Together & Handmaidens

2008-04-29T12:45:00.002-05:00

This weekend is the beginning (and first 2/3rds) of my craftsale summer season! Saturday I will be at the White Bear Armory for Truly..'s first sale-- Crafted Together. Looks to be a big event, and it coincides with the White Bears Ladies Bouquet Day-- I have no idea what that is, but it sounds amazing! I will be there from 9-5 on Saturday.
On Sunday there is another Handmaiden's sale at the Uptown VFW (Lyndale and Lake)- from 10-6, I believe. This one was so great last time-- lots of fun stuff, and this time the sellers are wearing formals- finally, a use for one of the many vintage bridesmaid/cocktail dresses I own.

I am in pretty good shape as far as stock goes for two back to back shows, unless the Bouquet Ladies go COMPLETELY out of control and buy me out. I still haven't received Doris Dotz's shipment of tiny plastic animals (I sent a polite if slightly snarky email yesterday asking if she can track the package and let me know how much longer it is going to take. She is apparently in California, and there is no reason for a package to take a week and half to get to Minnesota. I ship stuff, I know how it works). But I am still going to do one last batch of resin before Saturday, I think.
Also, I checked an email that I haven't checked since I got back into town- and the Walker had invited me to their Market Sale this Saturday (I couldn't have, as I was already paid and confirmed for the Crafted Together Show) -- but that would have been amazingly great-- sitting in the cafe level of the Walker selling my fruit and vegetable papyrus paper earrings to classy museum goers-- they were mainly interested in those earrings. I should make a whole bunch more of those in my last batch of resin, sell them all and make a million dollars so I can buy more papyrus.
I had to go through all of my stock of earrings in prepping them for the shows I am in, and there are some that I forgot about that are really great. However, I think I am going to "sacrifice" the older pairs to try and clear out a bit. I am hoping to find some great fall and winter shows to participate in, and with a heck of a lot of stock sitting around, I am often not all that motivated to make new stuff. I do have some great ideas and great new molds I am still perfecting, but I am not cranking stuff out at the same rate I used to.
And I think I am going back to the Rice Street Art Scoop-- the first craft show I was in! I think I sold 5 pairs of earrings in 5 hours, but it was great and my friend Kristen was my booth buddy and froze to death with me. This time it is in July. I will post for you again, blog, when I confirm all this.
I am very excited for this weekend. In White Bear I get an 8' table and 2 chairs. I know that I have enough stuff to fill an 8' table, but it still sounds huge. Perhaps I will lay on half of it.
I have some sweet new earring table displays that I invented. Pete lost my drill, so they are slow going, as I have to screw screws by hand, but they are going to work great. And I have my own mirror now! I am almost grown up! Planning a table is harder than you think. I will do a mock up tonight, and it will annoy Handsome Pete with how much space it takes up, but he will be nice and supportive about it. Which adds to my secret glee.
Sorry, no pictures again-- my computer died and I have to wait until my tech geek friend Amos comes back from travelling for his swanky tech geek job to help me. Like anyone keeps track of their Windows XP disc? sheesh, come on.

whoa, over eager

2008-04-20T14:38:00.003-05:00

I reread my last post and I think I was a little hyperactive. the last bit about the rings does not make any sense either, but that is because formatting changes from the post I create to the post you see. Lines weren't lining up where they should have been. In any case, sorry bout that.

This new post doesn't have all that much to say. I have a lot of more bails and rings blanks coming, and I am going to use this as a forum to lambast a really unprofessional etsy and ebay seller-- Doris Dotz. I bought a ton of little plastic animals from her, and her ebay auctions require that you pay immediately, so I couldn't get the combined shipping she described in her listings. I politely messaged her after I had bought and paid for about 7 items, asking if there were be a way to combine shipping and refund the extra after the fact. She sent an email saying she would look into it, and I didn't hear from her for a week or so. I messaged her again saying I would prefer that she just send everything immediately (I need my toys quickly, people) and that she could just keep all the money, which I think was about $3 per item, and would have equalled then $21 to ship a box of 7 tiny lots of animals. She did not reply-- About a month from the day I bought them, I sent her another email asking where my things were, and she replied that she had sent something out to another buyer and it had taken around two weeks, and she would try to resend my order. A week later I got a tiny box in the mail from her-- with ONE ITEM. One of the many things I bought and paid for. I messaged her again (and she always takes about 1-2 days to reply, which is annoying). She apologized and said she would send out the rest. That was Thursday, here is hoping. I need to make things with them tiny things. I wish the experience hadn't been so horrible, because she really does have amazing tiny plastic figurines that I cannot find anywhere else. Sigh. We shall see how this goes.

And I bought I new Amy Burhoe ring-- it is beautiful! I love it, and everyone should go and buy one from her right now. She does lovely things with glass!

Here is a picture of me with a new rainbow shirt on with a crocodile pin, my new favorite jade forest pattern earrings I mentioned in the travesty that was my previous post, and the Amy Burhoe ring. enjoy.....

Resin Pendants

2008-04-17T09:30:00.003-05:00

I have some new pendants, and a new ring concept I would like to share with you, blog.

This is the philosopher. He has a good look about him.

Then there is this guy, T Rex exit stage right. I actually have quite a collection of tiny plastic things to imbed, and now I have a huge collection of pendants on chains and neckwires, for craft sales. One of my stands fell over, it was TOO HEAVY.

Like this tiny vintage plastic raccoon. I gave him a mushroom and then encased him in a prison of epoxy forever. Yay!!!

This image is one of my favorites to use-- I have some casts done with it in one of my huge earring shapes that I am going to rock all summer.

And a cheetah head. Why not?

Ribbon bow necklaces. I have a few that are really elaborate with dripping pearls and whatnot, but I try and pour one of these in a different color every time I am a-resin-ing. Cutesy.

And a new favorite-- I call it the "My Heart Will Find Its Own Way" pendant-- it has a real operation tiny compass imbedded inside. Awesome, orienteer yourself to your heart's desire. Also, this version has some white dropped into the back, which makes kind of cloudy formations in the glitter resin. Luminous and pretty.

And last but not least-- these new rings. I have a secret supplier of the ring blanks that make these guys possible, that I couldn't reveal upon pain of death. The base is a wide, shiny disc, and the beads are transparent- which leads to a really flashy effect. Not only is the image doubled from its reflection on the ring base, any light coming in is reflected off that base and FLASHES YOUR EYEBALLS. BUT IT FEELS GOOD and looks even better. These are super shiny and look almost holographic.

This one is an image of a dandelion in dark red. This one is a dusky rose, green leaf against a But I think it looks like a firework. sky blue background.

lovelies! more to come, as I take more pictures....

oh so many things!

2008-04-08T09:55:00.002-05:00

Sorry I have been away so long, blog. I got a gig working on a video crew in St. Louis, shooting sketch comedy skits for professional comedians. It was really too, too grand for words. I loved every minute of it. And I got lots of hugs when we left.
Some of the comedians involved:
Greg Warren, Mark Gross, Craig Peters, Isaac Witty, Chad Daniels, Saleem, Auggie Smith, Tommy Drake, etc and so on. They were all extremely funny and very nice to me.
And in other news-- craft sale season is fast approaching. I have been doing what I can to produce in between sweet gigs and trips to Chicago-- and I have some new shapes. Of course, I don't have pictures for you at the moment because I am seldom home during daylight hours... but I will soon. I am also debuting a line of pendants on silver plated bails and chains-- on etsy, this sort of thing is what sells the most BY FAR in resin-- a pendant on base metal that costs less than $20. As much as I prefer sterling, I shouldn't be a snob, and it has been fun making these guys. I will post some pictures when I get them. My favorite one is entitled "T-Rex, Exit stage Right". I also found some great table display sort of things at savers-- a noodle drying rack, super vintage in its original box, that will serve as a necklace rack-- and some sort of marble based washcloth stand? or something presumably for the bathroom that will also work in a necklace stand capacity. Now I just need some multilevel set ups, and to finish the picture frame hanging device. I also got a mirror, and I think I should set up a table in my living room and see how all this stuff shakes down when it is all arranged.
very exciting.

Fun Pins

2008-03-03T16:55:00.006-06:00

I have some new pins in my etsy shop. The first pair were going to be a Valentine's series, with every possible sexual orientation represented, but I didn't get them done in time,
so I posted the two I had finished today. My descriptions are kind of funny, if you ask me.....

The next one is called POV Appendectomy--
I love the image and it is the perfect
institutional green.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

And last but not least, is the one that I wear all the time. I love owls, but especially, I love barn owls.

New Shapes

2008-03-02T15:12:00.007-06:00

So I have made some custom molds from vintage earrings. I have only had the new earrings at shows thus far, but I think tomorrow I will add a couple to my etsy site. These are nice and big, not for the faint of heart!

a story

2008-03-02T14:43:00.010-06:00

I would have invited you to this barn dance and pie raffle if I was still a two legged man.

I aim to outbid any man that sets his sights on Ellie's pie.

Mr. Lowry may not feel like he's a whole man anymore, but he has the whole of my heart.

Sales and new products...

2008-02-29T09:41:00.002-06:00

I am tickled to announce that I have been accepted to the Soap Factory/Star Tribune Design Fiesta! Don't get too excited, as this doesn't take place until June, June 7th, Saturday from 12-6pm, at the Soap Factory, just so you know. No worries, I will remind you all closer to the date.
I also applied for the Crafted Together show in White Bear Township in May, but I won't know for a little while if I have been accepted. And the Hand Maidens Mpls will be having another show before Mother's Day, and hopefully I can secure a place in that sale as well.
And I am expanding my line just a little specifically for the shows.
Usually I only work in sterling silver. Silver plated head & eye pins crinkle and crack on the surface and get yellowy and look absolutely awful. And earhooks should always be sterling or surgical steel or something else that is safe for sensitive ears.
But: sterling silver has a higher price, obviously, and I want to do necklaces/pendents at my shows. The fact of the matter is, not everyone wears dangly earrings. I have a gauges, and some people dont have pierced ears or only wear posts. Although I do have some post styles, and clip ons, I thought I should have some variety for those people who aren't earring enthusiasts, but still like my work. At my last show I had pins and rings. Next show I am going to have pendants on chains. I have the silver plated bails on their way, and the chains are here already. I feel like at shows, a lower priced item is going to go a little faster-- and sterling silver chain is expensive. I don't think too many people are going to want to pay the prices for sterling silver necklaces-- and sterling bails? They can be $6 per bail, for the kind I need. So, here come some cute, kitschy, fun or lovely pendants at a low introductory rate! Lots of ephemera images and fun designs.

Copycats and collaborations.

2008-02-29T09:16:00.002-06:00

So I found a seller on etsy who makes the same exact things I do-- my large teardrop shapes, with washi papers. I noticed her awhile ago. She charges half what I do (although she uses base metal and only one layer of resin, so her cost is less), and uses the some of the same papers as I do. Yesterday, I realized that her shop name was familiar. Looking back through my sold items, I realized that I had sold this woman a pair of earrings a month or two before she started selling the copycat earrings. In fact, the pair that is the closest duplicate to one of mine matches the pair I sold her:
Mine:
http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=6380233
her version:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9880197

I do not have a copyright on the mold shape, or the papers. But I came up with the idea of combining these elements for a certain effect. And in addition to that fact, she blatently is just copying my concepts-- something that, as an artist, I would never do. Especially not for resale. This woman is an art teacher, as noted in her profile. You would assume that she had some kind of moral value about art and intellectual property laws. I took my issue to the forums on etsy to see if people thought I had a right to be upset, and whether or not I should address it to admin or legal counsel. Everyone there said that it wasn't worth taking it to etsy admin., but admitted that the fact that I had sold her earrings before she started making hers puts her in a very bad light, and proves that it isn't just a coincidence or case of similar inspiration. She bought my earrings and purposefully recreated them. The people in the forums encouraged me to convo this seller, if only to show that I had noticed and recognized what she is doing, and that I am disappointed. I feel trespassed upon. The spirit of etsy is not to find something that sells and copy it for profit. Get some class.
So I convoed her, in a very professional and diplomatic way, I think, with the help of another great etsier who has dealt with copycats in regard to her own designs. I have yet to hear back.

This did prompt me to start approaching people for collaborative designs. I can draw, but I am not a pattern or design maker. So I am looking for people to provide the graphics for earrings, so that they cannot be copied. And I have some custom made molds right now, but I am going to spend the weekend making as many new shapes as I can with what silicone I have left.
I brought this copycatting on myself, as I use materials that anyone can get their hands on, if they look hard enough. I will strive to keep at least my online stock custom made and unforgeable, and reassure myself that I have a beautiful shop with beautiful pictures and lovely product and a sterling seller track record. I use the highest quality materials, I care about details, and having done resin for over a year, I have a mastery over the medium. How is that for a pat on the back. No imitator can really come close, right? Right. lol. great pep talk.
If any designers happen upon this, and would be interested in collaboration, please let me know!

Men and Dishes, new papers.

2008-02-22T10:47:00.003-06:00

I made dinner for Handsome Pete and my good friend, Brian. I made Shepherds Pie, or I guess more accurately Cottage Pie, as it was made with beef. I went grocery shopping, I peeled, chopped, boiled, mashed, cleaned, and then I baked a cake and made salads. The dinner was a success, and Handsome Pete agreed to do dishes, as I did all the cooking.
Why is it that Handsome Pete can't do dishes properly? It isn't a hard concept, just make sure there is no food or grease left on the dish. Getting up this morning and unloading the dish drainer was disgusting for me, and about half of what was in there went right back into the sink. I may have some kind of OCD complex where I require my dishes to be clean- inside and out, not greasy, not crusted. But I don't think I am out of line. I know in my small town Midwestern family, after big family meals on the holidays, the women cooked, served, and after the meal, we did the dishes. Perhaps this is why Handsome Pete doesn't know how to do dishes. Maybe he never had to. I know his family, and his mother is a bit of a super mom-- so maybe he didn't. But I can't see Pete's father not stepping in to do dishes, and if father does, you would think son would too. Moot point, though, because Pete has been living on his own since he was 18-- he has had to do his own dishes since then-- has he just been eating off of dirty dishes for the past 7 years? And if so, do I really want to make out with him from time to time? I feel like this situation is common among my friends and their significant others-- they guys either can't clean anything properly or they had to be trained-- which sounds demeaning, I know, but really-- what else would you call it when someone with more knowledge teaches someone with less knowledge methods and practices? I don't mean to make this a gender issue-- I am sure same sex partners run into it and I have had roommates who can create the same problems, but you don't have the added leverage of love and making out to try and coerce them into learning be better at cleaning the toilet. I am not a clean freak-- far from it. But why is this generation of 20 something women having to teach their partners the basics of housekeeping?
sorry, that was my Domestic Rant for the week.
In other news, I have new papers, and more on the way...

and on Valentine's Day there was a Q&A in the Onion with Slug from Atmosphere-- people wrote in with love or relationship questions and he answered them. He is pretty funny, and actually gave some pretty good advice for the serious questions (Like the one from someone whose partner is addicted to meth) and basically mocked and satirized the questions that deserved it. But I especially liked this one: "What, in your opinion, is the biggest difference between men and women?

Slug: The "wo." Sorry. Had to. I'm an idiot, mostly."

I know it is flippant and kind of an attempt at humor, but come on. You have to like that answer.

New image earrings. shinies.

2008-02-20T13:11:00.006-06:00

Hey.

I have been playing around with new materials and processes, and I have new image earrings to show for it. I don't think I will reveal all of my secret processes and resources-- but I have been having fun messing with ephemera and free use images-- and on that topic, I will never knowingly use copyrighted material. It is excrutiatingly annoying to see crafts made with care bears and whatnot sold on etsy-- People arent buying your stuff for your art, they are buying it because they like Carebears-- leave that stuff for Hot Topic. Anyway, sorry, tangent there. First on the list is this pair of Statue of Liberty Earrings. I bitmapped them, and backed them with this crazy green/blue iridescent paper that really flashed like crazy.

And these are a lovely examples of some of the great ephemera imagery I have been unearthing. chicks playing cellos-- the colors from this process are much more vibrant than the rice paper process I was using before-- and have great dimensionality. I will make a pair of my chick head earrings to post too, for the kitsch lovers-- the first pair of chick head earrings were the first to sell at the I Like You shop! I also have a great pair of birds wearing hats. Things have been busy and I really need to get cranking making new pairs. And I just ordered new papers today with the profits from the craft sale I was in.

And these are a combination of ephemera images and origami paper-- kind of whimsical and quaint, I think.

All these pictures were taken with my new camera, the main difference being the fact that I can manual white balance this one-- which leads to less post color correction. most of the time. Still have some getting used to, to do, on that camera.

And I am pretty much unenamored with craftster.org-- a site that hosts forums for crafting of all kinds-- I used to spend a lot of time on there, looking at projects and posting my own. There is some wonderful stuff to be found, really helpful people and tutorials-- I am just tired of it, I think. For the same reasons I am tired of the Etsy forums-- people asking the same questions over and over again. Flickr too, has made me feel like retreating to the far side of the room to sit facing the corner of cyberspace. At the same time, all these forums are kind of necessary evils, as they are probably the greatest unpaid exposure/advertising you can get. And hey, I just got featured on a blog, so can I really demonize public interspace?

www.wickedlychic.com is the site, and I am under daily ditties...

Make Out Goods and Wholesales whooooooeeee

2008-02-15T11:56:00.008-06:00

This past Sunday I had the pleasure of being part of Handmaiden's MPLS craft show, Make Out Goods, at the Uptown VFW. Orchestrated by those wonderful ladies from I Like You, it had a great number of booths and wonderful variety. I had half a booth, and it was a resounding success! Not only did I get to meet a lot of wonderful, friendly sale-goers, I also spent some money on some really great stuff.
I learned a little bit about what I need to do to improve my booth. I definitely need some sort of rack apparatus, to hang some of the earrings I have from. A lot of my new designs that you haven't seen yet are clear with translucent designs, and laying them against a black surface doesn't exactly do them justice, or draw the eye. I also need some sort of mirror, obviously. Last time I borrowed my friend Kristen's and in the frantic rush to prepare for this sale, I forgot to pick one up. Not only did a make a little money, after the sale I was approached for some wholesale business-- which is exciting and a whole new world for me-- and other sales, one of which is in June at the Soap Factory. Not sure if they will accept my wholesale terms, or if I will be accepted to the shows, but I have my fingers crossed.
I also tried Propay for the first time, which is a service that allows you to process credit cards, and being able to take plastic is a huge plus-- and you look all oldschool and awesome when you pull out your old-fashioned "kachunk" machine, as I call it-- the machine that makes an imprint of the card on a carbon copy slip. It worked out great, and I would recommend the service-- Propay also had a deal for etsy sellers not long ago, so you can get a discount on a premo deal.
I made out with some awesome stuff, too---
This bracelet is made from vintage japanese plastic, with a hammered toggle clasp. I wear it everyday, and I love it to pieces. I am so sorry, I cannot remember the seller's name, but she was charming and lovely. I looked at it, tried it on, set it down, and was running back 5 minutes later because I just couldn't let it go.
Love it. to. pieces.

And then I bought this beautious squid-- the seller said it had been through 2 sales without being bought, which to me is beyond ludicrous as it was a steal for the price she was asking. Whatever, it was my good fortune. Of course, I am ridiculous when it comes to buying things I don't really need, but I felt my life would not be complete without this squid. I am sure you can relate. It is hanging on my craft room wall, like the piece of art it is.

I also bought this wristlet made from a vintage tie from a guy named Ryan, I believe, who has an awesome beard, which is a way of life I would like to support. Awesome stuff, and really friendly guy. love this one too, and very affordable. I like a man who can sew, and use grommets or snaps. And has a beard.

And last but not least, this lovely pouch from Sinister Bags-- I have been in the market for a case to carry my business cards around in, and this was a great deal and will work perfectly. I love the abstract organic design, and it is vinyl and animal friendly. lovelies.

I believe you can find all these sellers' wares at I Like You, if you are interested. And they now have a new stock of my earrings, if you are interested in those.
More posts coming soon, I need to show you my jewelry fabrication knowledge from the class I started at the Edina Art Center, and wacky misadventures in my Community Education web design class.......

Slight Rant, forgive me.

2008-01-28T13:14:00.000-06:00

I love etsy. I love admin, I love the reasons they do the things they do. I think they and their site is great.
But, forgive me etsy, I am about to get a little petty.

It isn't a huge thing. It is a small thing, really, but it has gotten under my skin and I feel I need to purge it.
The front page. The front page changes rather often, and, as I understand it, often is taken from treasuries created by other etsians, or curated by admin.
I just, I just.... I just get annoyed when I see repeat after repeat of sellers. I know that if admin is just pulling treasuries, then popular sellers will show up time and again. But there are a few that have shown up with great frequency. And etsy is FILLED filled fillED! with wonderful sellers.

Perhaps I should chill out and acknowledge that I am jealous. I have been on the front page once in my many months on etsy, and I didn't even get to see it. The only reason I know about it is a friend of a friend and I started talking about etsy (she is a frequent buyer) and asked what I sold. When I described my wares, she exclaimed that she had been debating which pair of earrings to buy from me, and that she had come across my stuff when a pair of my earrings had been on the front page. I hadn't noticed a huge jump in views, I guess, so I never would have known. I have been in 2 treasuries that I have noticed/found/been contacted secretly about. My odds are not good.

I know there is no real way to regulate this, and really, who notices this but someone who logs on to etsy several times a day? Maybe admin doesn't even realize the number of repeats they put up. I guess I just want them to spread the exposure around. These repeat sellers have wonderful stuff, I do not mean to insult their work. It just irks me to see the same seller pop up time and again-- The front page is the best ad space on etsy, and you can't buy it.

(WHY NOT ME!!!!! oh why not meeeeee!!!!......)
Thanks, I feel better. I will now shake it off.

Weeks off, and new news.....

2008-01-21T21:11:00.000-06:00

I am sorry to anyone who reads this, I have been remiss in my blogging.
There is new news, though....
Item number one involves the boyfriend, Handsome Pete, as we like to call him.
In the Twin Cities, there is an annual event called the Art Shanty event. Or something close to that. It involves conceptualizing a design, creating a pitch and applying for a grant. If you are chosen, you are given money to create a themed art ice shanty on Medicine Lake for part of January and February. Handsome Pete's concept was chosen as one of the chosen few to be budgeted for this year's event.
Last year, good friends Sam, Brennan, Jaime and Mark were chosen and did a kind of shanty arboreum. This year, Sam and Brennnan return with Handsome Pete and wonderful Swedish dwarf friend Katinka with the S.U.R.V.I.V.A.L. Shanty. The shanty is shaped like the aft end of a crashed plane. Their concept involves survival lessons, orienteering and a bit of fantasy.
The shanty website is http://www.artshantyprojects.org/,
and Handsome Pete and friends' shanty blog is at http://medlakesurvival.blogspot.com/2008/01/diary-entry-no-one.html
both well worth checking out. Handsome Pete as not been home much, working like mad on this project to see that it was installed in time this past Thursday.
I went out on the lake on Saturday-- a daunting -15 degrees here in Minnesota. Luckily I found a sweet pair of Dickies overalls and Duck boots the day before at Savers-- the walk from the parking lot to the shanty created a frozen shell in my vitamin water in a mere 15 minutes. They group was spending time padding their shanty with the contents of their fictional luggage-- clothing and tarps, and enjoying lake life-- there are bicycle races on the ice, right across the way, an ice museum, and many more I didn't get the chance to experience. The project goes through mid February on Saturdays and Sundays, and it is free and a lot of friendly fun, please check it out if you are in the area. At least look at the survival blog, it is wonderful. All of Handsome Pete's group are good friends, and fantastic people.
As for me, I took some vacation time off of work, and it was a little bit more free time than i am used to. I did get my friend Amanda's requested necklace made, http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=7150809, and did some molding and casting today, and lets all hope it turned out. I also did a lot of pouring, finishing and dremeling, so I have a lot of new product-- which leads me to the next big news......
I brought my resin jewelry to I Like You, a locally independantly owned gift/craft, all around fun shop that is on 42nd and Nicollet in Minneapolis, http://ilikeyoublog.wordpress.com/ I had had only a pot of coffee all day and was rather nervous and awkward, dropping things and talking too much, but the owners, lovely and kind women that they are, immediately agreed to stock my stuff in their wonderful store. I also bought about $75 dollars worth of stuff, but I really can't help myself from buying brilliant merchandise. I got a recycled fabric purse, a resin bottlecap pin with an ephemeral image of a fox from EKRA, or maybe that is where the purse was from because when I search that name on etsy I get the signature rag rug with cat design that I have seen at Twin Cities craft fairs and I Like You-- I need to keep tags. Anyway.... and a "Made in Minnesota" onesie for my most favorite baby friend, Clare Olivia Strong.
Have I mentioned how amazing it is to have a baby who is a friend? How amazing it is to have another friend who is such an amazing mother? Molly Wicks, the mother, is the most natural, wonderful, loving and effortlessly perfect mother to her 3 and 1/2 month old, and I have been able to witness it from day 1. Such a gift. And I get to look for and buy the sweetest baby garments and accouterments. So just so you know, you buy from my shop, I spend it on a sweetheart of a 3 and 1/2 month old...... if that is an excuse to buy.
I also am a part of a gourmet club that my friend, the mother, Molly started, as a way to be with friends without the stress of bringing the baby out and about. Our first meeting was Saturday, and it was a raging success. The members include Molly and her unassuming fiancee and baby daddy, Dana, who is my compatriot in all things out of our league, her lovely sister Maxine and her husband Wade, and friends of Molly and Maxine, terribly classier and a little bit older than I am, and their spouses. The host of the night chooses the theme, or region of the 5 course meal, and provides the entree. The other members and their spouses and/or partners are assigned a course and wine or liquor pairing. This leads to experimentation, good eating and not a little drunkenness. My assigned partner is Maxine and Molly's friend Courtney, one of the more accomplished gourmands of the group. This is ideal, as not only is she patient and will teach that which I do not know about gourmet cooking (which is a substantial amount) but she is also a type A personality and will own me in so many wonderful ways, take charge AND she has matching dishes and a couple different kinds of wine glasses, which is sadly lacking at my apartment. If we had a random craft, book and VHS movie night, I am set to host. Unfortunately, the 9 matching sets of vintage grocery store dishes that my mother gave to me (the same she took away to college back in the 70's) probably would not impress this crowd. And I currently have only two wine glasses left that have no yet broken-- (Handsome Pete is hard on glassware and I really take it to you when I do dishes.....) . In any case, Courtney and my course was salad, the theme as Gascony and the rest is history. We had a traditional and simple greens and vinaigrette salad with soft boiled quail eggs and breaded pan fried goat cheese patties. You can tell already, that I was but an accessory to this wonderful salad. I am more along the lines of stir fried cabbage and rice or a crock pot roast, but to each their own. I did manage to pick out a fine bordeau ( if I mispelled that we can all laugh about it later), which was a huge hit, and an $8 bottle of white French wine which was funny. We also had duck legs cured in duck fat, armagnac soaked prune and apple cake, and escargot, and a lovely garlic soup, among other things.
Next gourmet club Courtney and I are in charge of hosting and the entree, which will be Italian short ribs----- I can speak Italian, which means I will be drunkenly exclaiming "Delicioso!" all night sometime in March.
And the other great news is that Molly has asked me to by one of her bridesmaids for her November wedding this year. I was not picked to be a bridesmaid in the two people's weddings that I thought for sure I would be a part of-- my friend since kindergarten's and my closest friend's from college's weddings. I had no real hard feelings about either of these, but I thought my chances of being a bridesmaid were kaput. But Molly and I have known each other for years, and since she got pregnant, a real bond has formed. Who is to say whether it was a change in her or in me or just our situation in general that brought us closer (although I would say it is my propensity to be available to "just hang out, doing whatever", and my extreme eagerness to spend time with baby Clare, and my love for my friend, Molly), but Molly decided to include me in her wedding, and I am honored. Hopefully I can be of some help with my ever-present craftiness-- making invitations, decorating or helping to plan. The dresses are beautiful, J. Crew and in regal purple http://www.jcrew.com/catalog/product.jhtml?id=prod90698231
and more than I would spend on three dresses, but they are indeed beautiful.
I am very excited about all that has gone on since New Years.
Stay tuned to my shop for new shapes, necklaces and general good feelings.
P.S. good traveling to Handsome Pete's aunt Dinah who is traveling in China right now, an extremely classy lady who will hopefully life-coach me to success when she is back. She also reads my blog, which makes about 6 of you.
P.P.S. well wishes and missing you to my friend Breanne who is the good friend from kindergarten that I mentioned before (no bad feelings about bridesmaideness, I promise!) who just moved to L.A. so her husband can try to work acting where there is real acting work. She just had some bad luck but she is okay and will adapt and find a wonderful job and have all kinds of wonderful adventures that will make me jealous. I miss you and I have the utmost faith that you will be very happy there until you come back. But please come back someday, or let Will find so much work that you can spend spring and autumn here and winter and summer there. Either way, I am good.
She is one 1/6 of the people that read my blog.
And happy end of January to everyone, I have to go back to work tomorrow, so I should go to bed.

Holidays, New Camera and food stuffs....

2008-01-01T10:58:00.000-06:00

Well, I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. Yes, I am finally blogging again, on the first day after the official end of the holiday season. I was caught a bit unprepaired this year-- I thought I was going to make or buy handmade for everyone on my list--- but the trick to that, you see, is to start early enough.... I was up until 3:30am the night before Christmas Eve finishing presents for the boyfriend's family, my mother got a half finishied macrame lanyard and a promise of a very short wait on the finished piece, and some people didn't get the grand gift I had envisioned for them. I have learned my lesson, though-- I am starting next year's Christmas presents tomorrow. So no one stop being my friend or divorce out of the family, that would really screw up my present planning.
I got some pretty nice presents this year: my mother gave me a food processor for my birthday, and it is lovely and heavy which I am pretty sure means it is amazing; she also gave me a digital camera for Christmas, as mine is kind of futzing out and its brain is dying, and socks as always and some brooches and a cookbook; my little brother got me a selection of teas, which is the exact same thing he got my mother; Pete got me a Will Oldham duet album that is a very limited release; Pete's sister-in-law and brother, urbanites from Chicago, showed much class and style in the present they got for me-- earrings made from some kind of metal with a very cool design on them, and a nylon bag that rolls up teeny tine to keep in your purse for when you decide to go to the Co-op and need a reusable bag to gain the cashiers approval and respect-- and the bag has a great pattern; Pete's mother maintained her reputation by knitting and felting a cloche style hat in a beautiful deep navy blue mohair, with a black ribbon around the crown and a great art deco button on the side (I will have to get a picture of it to show you, dear reader) and a crochet book; Pete's sister gave me a bundt pan, which is kind of funny; and my good friend Breanne gave me a great carry-all bag with bright pictures of wildlife, a necklace she made herself with enamel flower findings and moonglow beads, some karma soap, and iron on fabric patches with little animals on them. All in all, not so bad.
Christmas at my parents' house involves a lot of cooking, and this is what going home and the holidays has really become for me: cooking with my mother. We made many things, and the only thing that wasn't famously received were my roasted brussels sprouts. I don't know what possessed us to try them-- usually, one wouldn't dare at my house as both my stepfather and brother are particular vegetable eaters (meaning they only eat peas)-- but with both grandmothers coming, my mother and I figured we have enough of a majority to warrent sprouts. I thought they were pretty good, but I got a lot of sympathetic looks from my grandmothers, and offers of ways to fix them. My mother had made her usual spread of Christmas cookies, so I tried out my new camera on them. For dessert, mother baked pears in vanilla bean, lemon and sugar-- and they were really quite good. I didn't take the time to set up an aesthetically pleasing backdrop, but I took a shot of the pears because they really are quite beautiful and rustic looking. That shot is for my mom's yahoo 360--

And so now I am trying to learn my new digicam, which is a fun way to refer to a DIGITAL CAMERA--he he. For my earrings, I needed a good macro setting, and I think this one is pretty good. It does not have an easy way to manually shut off flash, though, which I find annoying. I am sure there is a setting that will be perfect for jewelry shots-- there has to be, because there are a ridiculous amount of settings on this tiny camera, some of which are neither practical nor desireable-- for instance, the fireworks setting. There is no time ever that I will be taking pictures of fireworks, although i am curious as to what would it look like if I took a picture of my cat with that setting-- would he look like a firework? Because if so, I take back my desparaging comments about the fireworks setting, because it is awesome. There is also an aquarium setting, and so I took some pictures of my mother's salt water tank. They look grainy, so I think what the aquarium setting does is duplicate the feel of looking out through a submersible's dirty windshield. And then there is the underwater setting-- not that the camera is waterproof, but juuuust in case the average consumer wants to buy or fabricate a seal box to drop into the water-- a big one, because there is no remoate shutter on this camera, so you have to go in the box too-- well, here is the setting for you.
And so... holidays were had by all and it was great but boy... am I glad its over. More to come on adventures in new camera picture taking.....

Crafts from the Past, Picnic Necklace

2007-12-14T14:29:00.001-06:00

Back in my early days of resin casting, I happened upon a couple packs of plastic ants for some sort of crafting purpose at my favorite local liquidators: Ax-Man. Ax-Man is amazing for several reasons:

1. The amount and variety of stuff they have for sale. Need sheets of foam? circuitry? castors? squishy fish toys? a magnifying glass you attach to your head? Genuine Young and the Restless T-shirts? Bulk Marbles? Tiny plastic ants with yellow googly eyes?

This is your one stop shop.

2. Signs. The signs the employees make are amazing, cut and past magazine ads, randomness and humor. For example, the sign for the beginners wall stencilling pack features an old man with a shotgun. The handwritten caption reads something along the lines of "Life is hard on the farm, with few pleasures, but I saved every penny until I could afford Brite Ones beginners stencilling pack. And anyone who wants to take my Brite Ones beginners stencilling pack is going to have take it from my cold, dead hand."

That is a poor approximation, but you get the idea. Ax-Man is so much fun.

So I got a few packs of googley eyed ants, and set about making my picnic necklace. I had wanted to get some kind of tiny pie or something to add to a central bead, but I kind of like the simplicity. I would have listed it for sale, but there is a drill mark through the middle of one bead, as you can see in this picture. And I hand made the chain out of copper wire, so it is somewhat imperfect, as well.

But still, I think it is pretty fantastic. Googley eyes, all right!

All kinds of newness.....

2007-12-14T14:00:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the delay in posting. My Birthday was Wednesday, and I have been doing some freelance animation. Birthday highlights include: a new sewing machine from my darling boyfriend. What a sweet boy. He wants me to mend his pants; a food processor from my mom which I will get at Christmas- I am going to make so much hummus; a flan cake from a good friend of mine, along with a great vintage sweatshirt and a supersweet t-shirt; and I got myself Guitar Hero III, which I can only play at my friend Brandon's house, as he has the PS2 necessary for me to rock out. And I rocked so much that nobody would play with me anymore, and I wore out the battaries on one guitar already.
Guitar Hero supplies you with stickers to decorate your guitar console. These include images of skulls, flames, a tiger, safety pins, a green goblin, etc. My first reaction was "Wait, where are the stickers of three mice in a bath tub?" And then I realized, I have that sticker in my vast collection of ridiculous stickers, and so I am substituting my own for the skulls and goblins. I also have one of an owl wearing glasses. I did use the provided tiger and flame stickers, to make a fire breathing tiger. As you can tell, I look bad ass when I rock.
Also: I have new molds on the way, so stay tuned for new and interesting shapes and sizes. I am also getting new images to include with my origami and art papers, which is very exciting. Aaand I will now have ring blanks to make rings out of my beads for those who don't necessarily dig big dangly earrings. And I am making new molds to make necklaces out of. I am also going to make more molds of vintage buttons and findings to make jewelry out of.
Yes, a whole new era of i am not fruiting is about to commence. Of course, I didn't get all this on board in time for the Christmas rush, but c'est la vie!
I craft for the love of craft, not for the dolla bills.
And finally, I got a hair cut. I have big bangs, and an indie mullet. I am not sure how I feel about it, but response has been positive. This may be because my friends know I have fairly low self esteem, and are trying to head off some kind of self image break down on my part.
stay tuned for future bulletins, with bang photos in Bang-O-Vision!

New Earrings today, I love The Birds!

2007-12-05T21:07:00.000-06:00

So I didn't work today, and managed to get a handful of new earrings on my etsy site!

These are a particular favorite,
"The Birds". These actually have tiny plastic birds in them. They are huge, and hot and suh weet.

These are called "High Drama", and I think they would look great with a little black dress or a little red dress, pretty much any color of dress that is smaller than big.

These are called "Leslies", because the first time I made a pair from this paper, I knew they were perfect for a very classy and stylish lady I know named Leslie. She got the first pair, and every pair from this paper is henceforth named after her.

And in other news.... I got a new dress. It looks like this, and it is made out of a nylon bamboo camoflage patterned fabric. I had to take a leather bird off of it, but it was $10 and awesome. This is the least flattering picture I could find, you are welcome. This is the face I imagine bamboo would make it it had a face.

And if you would like to know why I can't take my own ebay pictures, this is why. I don't stop moving when the timer goes off.

Okay, that isn't quite true. I actually have blurs for hands, that is why I put them behind me in every other picture. Which means you should be even more impressed that I HANDMAKE jewelry, and go check out all the other new pairs of earrings I posted today at my etsy shop.
www.iamnotfruit.etsy.com

other sites, etc and so on.

2007-12-04T13:39:00.000-06:00

I have been going crazy trying to network while in my cubicle at work. Like a spider sitting in my web, hairy legs on each of the spokes, lying in wait....
So I have an Indiepublic page, http://www.indiepublic.com/profile/iamnotfruit

You can see by the screenshot how many windows I have open. INsanity..

And I have a DIY something something page. I forgot it already. Hang on....

http://www.diyscene.com/forum/member.php?u=953

Check me out, and if you have an account on either of these, lets be friends.
Next up: Flicker..........
Come into my parlor........

Email Newsletter!

2007-12-02T16:28:00.000-06:00

Well, I finally accomplished it: I have created my very own email newsletter.
The first one went out today to friends and family, a kind of "send this along if you know anyone who would be interested in my earrings" kind of thing. I was disappointed that you can't use your etsy mini in these- pretty much all email providors will screen it out, as a lot of junk mail comes with flash or java script text.... ah well.
In the future I will be using it to showcase new additions to my etsy shop, sending out notifications on sales, and to phish your passwords, I mean... um, I take that back. No really, I can just figured out how to generate a basic email, it will take me awhile to figure out how to trick you into giving me your myspace password or facebook so I can advertise Macy's gift cards and Prada purses which people will totally believe are legit.

In all seriousness, though, if anyone would like to sign up for a newsletter that will probaby come out once a month at the most, send me an email to contact@iamnotfruit.com, and I will sign you up. You can laugh at the fact that I used courier sans as my font, even though it is so overused and cliched. ha. And you can find out about new earrings, new necklaces and sales!

So I just got this new Prada purse for free, and I can hardly believe it! All I had to do was enter my email address and they sent it to me right away using brainwaves. It was dehydrated, of course, but if you add water and microwave it, it plumps right back up. I am going to hurry and grab a few more before they run out, you should too!

New Earrings Posted! and some talk about sci fi

2007-11-29T08:42:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was my day off of work, and it was pretty glorious.

I managed to pour both stages of a new batch of earrings, and post a whole bunch that I had been sitting on for a little while. I am having a little trouble adjusting to the new apartment-- it doesn't get the sunlight the old apartment did, and I don't feel like going outside to shoot photos anymore (Fair, 9 degrees, feels like -6 degrees in Minneapolis right now), so I am still working out the best system/times for being able to find some sunshine in my apartment.

Also, yesterday, I sold one of my favorite pairs of earrings-- The Irises. These have been posted for awhile, and I could never understand why no one snapped them up, they are beautiful earrings. I made them my avatar, even. They are finally going to a good home.

I am going to have to dremel in the basement when I pop my new batch out of their molds. I have a lot of new art papers, thanks to Paper Gami in Uptown, Minneapolis-- they have scrap packs, god love em!

Also yesterday, I went to the library to pick up all the Octavia Butler books I ordered. Of course, they all came in at once, which means I have to read 6 books in 2 or 3 weeks. It is a good sign, though, that I picked them up at 5pm and had finished the shortest one by 10.

If you are not familiar with Octavia Butler, and you enjoy feminist fiction or science fiction in general, you should definitely find something of hers-- she is, for me, right up there with Margaret Atwood and Patricia Highsmith with fantastic fiction authors. I had run into Butler's work years ago in an anthology of science fiction -- her shortstory, Bloodchild, was in it and it really stuck with me. The premise involves a world where humans live symbiotically with an alien race, which look like large bugs. The bugs provide companionship and some sort of narcotic which they produce in their bodies for the humans, and the humans act as surrogate mothers for the alien eggs- they carry them in their bodies. And it is only younger men who can act as egg carriers. It has been years since I read this story, but I remember it being really interesting how her premise re-articulates the significance and value of motherhood. Surrogate mothering of an alien egg is given more value because the aliens are a dominant, if benevolant, member of this society. Human females (I think, it has been awhile) are only there to propogate the human species and produce more males capable of gestating alien young-- but human motherhood is not necessarily a highly valued role. The power of motherhood is transferred to young males, but along with it comes the threat of damage to body (if your alien partner is not careful in monitoring your pregnancy, the larva can eat their way out of your abdomen), and the indignity and pain of impregnation, and penetration (the alien species penetrates the human male abdomen with an ovipositor). This isnt a horrific tale, by any means, although my description may make it seem so. The most compelling part of the story is the relationship between the protagonist and his alien partner, in the middle of the politics of the world and a very human (although usually female) apprehension of the the physical dangers of childbearing.

wow, I diverged into literary feminist theory, sorry guys.

To shake it off, you could go take a look at all the pretty earrings I posted!

http://www.iamnotfruit.etsy.com/

Crafts of Past, Party two the boogieman

2007-11-28T12:03:00.000-06:00

Meet my little boogieman. I did a stop motion animation featuring this little guy. His face is made from polymer clay, his eyes are freshwater pearls, and his body has a wire frame with a soft sculpture sewn padding. all his fingers articulated. He is a little rough looking, but he ended up looking nice and creepy in the animation.
The story line involved a young girl and her cat. At bedtime, the cat would jump up onto the little girl's bed and give her a kiss on the mouth. This little boogieman witnesses this from where he is spying from the window. He is fascinated and titillated, touching his mouth, the bulbous tentacle on the back of his head moving around in agitation. He gets so worked up, he ends up slamming on the window with his little fists, and the cat turns and hisses evilly at him, and he scurries off. The little girls is afraid, but doesn't know what was outside her window. She goes to sleep clutching her feline friend.
The next night, the little girl is in bed, and she hears a noise. Tension mounts as time goes by, but the source of the noise is revealed when the cat jumps onto the bed. Again, we see him walk up the bed and give the girl a kiss, but as the camera pans down the bed, we see that the cat's tail is extra long, indeed, it continues on over the side of the bed. The camera follows the tail, and we see that it attaches to the tentacle that comes out of the boogieman's head. He is standing at the foot of the bed, having turned his tentacle into a convincing facsimile of the cat, and he is enjoying the kiss the little girl is giving the doppelganger cat up above. The boogieman touches his mouth, his face a mask of rapt and blissful pleasure.
Creepy I know. It is my masterwork. Sadly, although I have all the still shots from the stop motion animation part, I dont have the finished piece with the composited live action footage. That is right, I green screened my boogieman into live action. I also did all of his facial expressions in photoshop, frame by frame.

crafts of past, present and future.

2007-11-27T10:57:00.000-06:00

It is a varied and many splendored thing, my affair with crafting. here are a few highlights:

One of the first things I sold in my etsy shop was this Magpie Necklace. It is wire and vintage buttons and beads, in tones of grey, black, red, etc. I have a bunch of this style necklaces in the making.

The next entry is a crocheted turtle that I made for a turtle enthusiast friend for her birthday. It is loosely based on the pattern for "Baby Misty Turtle", a turtle crocheted with baby yarn that featured a removeable shell and... diaper. Although I could find references to the pattern online, I could not find the actual pattern, or buy the back issue of the crochet magazine. I found the designer, Fran, a wonderful woman, and asked if she had any ideas on how to get that back issue. She sent me one in the mail. Fran Goreham, bless your sweet crafting heart.
I didn't make a diaper for mine.

They are a little dark.

Okay, onto the next craft.

This is a green man mask that I made for a college class. It was built on a cast of my face, so it is built to fit. The process involved cutting out individual leaves to apply to the face cast, making a mother mold, and doing a neoprene slip cast-- neoprene makes a slightly rigid plastic like cast that is lightweight. I did another version out of my mothermold that was reinforced latex, and that one was much thicker and heavier. It is painted and trimmed and backed with felt, and a band is attached to hold it on your head. This is the autumn version, the latex is a spring version in greens and silver.

Okay, maybe more later, adding photos seems ridiculous, and I am guessing there is an easier and more format friendly way to do it. I will look into that.

And in the beginning....

2007-11-27T10:09:00.000-06:00

There was blog.

Welcome any and all to my fledgeling blog. It is new and shiny.

I suppose I will start with a getting to know you exercise-- This exercise entails me giving you details about me in the hopes of making you think I am interesting so I can monitor your brainwaves when you come back and read me again.

Details include:

physical characteristics. I have brown hair, brown eyes, yellow teeth and big hands. I am 5'10", a natural kind of girl. I am built like an orangutan.

I grew up in small town central WI, in a dairy farming community. My family raised whitetail deer, and I bottle fed several fawns when I was younger. I went to college at the U of M Twin Cities and got my undergraduate degrees in film and media studies and art. My thesis was on feminist interpretations of horror films wherein the monster is coded as female. I took a lot of video and animation classes, and screenprinting. I want a gocco printer for Christmas. I need a better paying job to be able to afford that. Someday... Someday America! I will have a better job and, dare I say it, health insurance. And also a Gocco printer. I own pretty much every Jean Claude Van Damme movie that he didn't self-direct, excluding the last 5-8 years. I do stand up comedy although not often and not particularly well. Minneapolis has a great stand up comedy community and lots of venues. I am also helping out a live comedy troupe called The Label-- stay tuned for info on their next show at the Bryant Lake Bowl, called Poopy Poopy Fart Butt.

Also, and most importantly, I have a cat named Bicycle who has done so much to further my goal of someday becoming a crazy cat lady. Because, folks, I am crazy about my boy

This guy is a peach. Look at that face. ohh and he is so fat and agreeable.

I also live with my boyfriend, Pete, who is insisting on growing a moustache, which I think is gross. This is us sideways.

And the focus of my blog: I craft, pretty much each and every day, I am making something, cooking something, writing something or making a mess to show the world my industriousness. Everything is an adventure, and I would love to have someone along for the ride. I crochet, I mold and cast resin, I screenprint, I use an upholstery button covering machine, I work with wire, I make gemstone jewelry, I relief print, I am learning to knit, I can sew a little, cook soups, I can macrame, bead loom, do effects make-up, draw and paint, make things out of things and all these other things! I am constantly trying new things or making ridiculous things.

My next entry will include crafts of past, present and future.

thank you.