Kitty Cat, Kitty Cat, where are you?

Why, they're right here of course! I realized a little while ago that this year I've been severely lacking in dressing up my precious little cat girls for Halloween. Sooo...I just finished making 8 little one-of-a-kind kitties for anyone who was hoping for them this year. I just love how they all turned out. Some are more spooky while some are bringing in the harvest. I enjoyed adding lots of little detail too...I hope they charm you just as much as they've charmed me!

They are all listed right now in my Etsy shop...if you see one you like...snatch it up! They are are one of a kind kitties!

Also...don't forget! As stated in my previous post...tomorrow is the last day place a custom order until January 1st!

Last Call for Custom Orders!

Until January 1st that is. The busiest time of the year is fast approaching and I have decided to make it easier on myself this year by not accepting any custom orders until after the holiday season...but I still wanted to give anyone who was interested in having something specially made a chance to get their order in before I officially "close the door" on that part of my business...for now anyway.

This includes wedding cake toppers, pets to match your pets, Christmas ornaments, baby shower gifts, etc. If you were thinking about getting your mother in law a bat with her face on it, now's the time to do it. If you were hoping for a custom made cake topper for your December wedding, don't delay!

My last call will last until October 1st. If you'd like to discuss prices or options for custom orders, just drop me a line and we can talk about it (vintagebycrystal@yahoo.com).

Thanks so much! And also, it's Mom's birthday today! She must be out partying today because she's not answering her phone. So Mom...Happy Birthday! :)

I'm back!

My "Midwest Show Tour" is now over and I'm back home reflecting on the great experience we had. And getting re-situated! I'm grateful to say that lots and lots of figures and animals found new homes...as proven by the pile of price tags I was left with! I take them off before I wrap up the goodies as a way to track my sales for each show.

Renegade Chicago was such a mob scene that I didn't really get a chance to even think about taking photos. But we had lots of lax time at the Creative Connection Minneapolis and my mom managed to snap this photo of me at our booth there. I couldn't bring my big shelf with us, so I had to improvise in terms of props (meaning...cardboard boxes under the table cloth). Oh well!

I don't know why I was afraid I didn't have enough items to sell! Once I saw them altogether I couldn't believe how many I had made!

Some of the larger pieces graced the highest peak of our display.

My mom brought some amazing needle felted logs, stumps, deer and a squirrel to create a neat woodland scene. It was happily dismantled piece by piece and we have two logs (one with a snail), one stump, and one tiny fawn left, which I will soon be listing on Etsy.

They're all saying "Pick Me! Pick Me!"

Across from our table was the gorgeous table of Sherry from Sherry's Rose Cottage. It was such decadent eye candy and so girly!

I was tempted by these shoes...but with my giant feet, they made me feel like Cinderella's stepsister!

Mom and I had some free time between shows to explore Minneapolis a little bit. It was gorgeous and so modern and Mom couldn't stop talking about how much she loved it!

During the Creative Connection I had Mom watch the booth while I took Jennifer Murphy's heritage bunny class. And of course like anything she does...I just LOVED it! I can't believe I was actually able to sew this little guy together on the first try and hope to make some more to give away as gifts. I think I'd like to add a few more details to him and he'll be perfect! Jen's talented mom Pat Murphy was there in class helping out and taught me some little sewing tricks... So helpful and amazing! They are a dream team and I can't stop gushing! :)

I've also been a long time fan of Ashley Carter's Goldbug Studio. She had a table there with Earth Angels and it was so great seeing her work in person and of course finally meeting her in person! I also managed to pick out just one piece to take home with me and am now the proud owner of one of her original pieces...yay! And a discontinued piece at that!

There were so many other great booths there and I shopped around intermittently. Little bags of doodad's weren't going to escape my grasp... And I've never paid so much for ribbon, but this fantastic vintage nautical themed printed ribbon was completely worth it!

These vintage goodies will be given to future spun cotton figures.

Colored dresden is hard to resist and of course will show up on future angels and leprechauns.

I've been looking for a nice hand knitted head wrap thingy and while I was hoping to knit it myself...I decided to be realistic and just buy one from someone who's much better at knitting than me. I like this one because it blends in with my hair...sort of a blended detail. Can you tell how fashionable I am? lol

I also did some trading...there are some new babies that have and will show up in my life soon and they of course need to be showered with gifts! I got two hand screen printed onesies with owls on them from Too Many Suitors. So cute!

Mom and I took the train from city to city. The slow...long...slow train. It was actually kinda nice and Mom gave me some pointers on crocheting. I made these tiny hats for future Christmas and winter themed spun cotton girls and boys. They'll be quite warm for sure!

And of course I spent most of my train time spinning cotton. Christmas...here I come!


It was an amazing two shows, a fantastic trip, and of course some great bonding time with Mom. I met so many great people and saw so many great things. I just loved it! But I'm glad to be home with kitties and Ben and with my feet up for a little while. :)

These guys will be waiting for you!

All of these guys are currently nestled snug in their tissue paper...waiting to arrive in Chicago for their big debut!

My mom and I will be traveling by train to Chicago for Renegade this weekend and then it's on to Minneapolis for the Creative Connection! I hope you'll come see us if you live in or near either area! And you'll get to also visit and maybe even take home any of these guys...

Needle felted pumpkin people and witches have spun cotton bodies. Another collaboration between mom and I! She made the heads and I created the bodies and outfits. They are very large (about 14" tall) and I just love how they turned out!

I've been experimenting with different spun cotton shapes. I previously had a hard time doing round shapes...but I'm finally starting to figure it out! The pumpkin head and green pumpkin candy container are both spun cotton.

I always need a little collection of owls to accompany me to shows. And they rarely come back home with me...sniff...I guess they have to leave the nest sometime!

I also created another collection of sculpted head cuties. New additions include a moon man and skeleton man.

Some twists on classic figures including a girl with a cat mask, a spider with a fly and a strange looking moon man!

And I am completely smitten with my new veggie people! Ok...Miss. Banana isn't a veggie...but she fits right in! :)

Come see my mom and I and all of our friends at Chicago Renegade and the Creative Connection starting this weekend! :)

You are what you eat!

So said the veggie girl! No wonder children hate eating their vegetables! If this is what happens when they do!

Last week I was picking fresh produce from my parent's garden...the carrots as a whole weren't quite ready yet, but I did manage to pick a few huge and weird looking ones that actually looked like little people with arms and legs and all. They just needed a face. My mom likes to keep the most human looking carrots on her window sill until they shrivel up into old people carrots. So in honor of those short lived human carrots, I made the carrot girl...available now in my Etsy shop! :)

Also, if anyone has any advice of where to go and what to do while we're in Chicago and Minneapolis...please speak up! We've got some free time during our tour and I'd love any and all suggestions! :)

Join me in the Midwest!

Renegade Chicago
Saturday, Sept. 11 - Sunday, Sept. 12, 2010 11-7
Division St. btw Damen and Paulina, Chicago IL

Creative Connection Handmade Market
Wednesday, Sept. 15 - Saturday, Sept. 18, 2010 (times vary)

The Hyatt Regency, 1300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis MN

I'm going on tour! Sort of. I'll be at both of these fabulous events in the next couple of weeks and I'm so excited! My mom and I are traveling by train with our wares and will be stopping in Chicago for Renegade, the nationwide hip and trendy craft show that originated in Chicago. Then it's off to Minneapolis for the much anticipated Creative Connection, being put on by Jo Packham (editor of Where Women Create magazine) and Nancy Soriano (former editor of Country Living magazine). If you live in or near those areas I hope hope hope you'll come out to visit us!! We're so looking forward to meeting you!

Also, you can always check out where I'll be on the "Events" page of my website. :)

And thank you so much everyone for the awesome response to my paper mache headed characters! Mr. Gourd Man with the chenille arms and legs is still looking for a home, but all the others have made their claim! :) Thanks again!

Adventures in Paper Mache

I'm finally back from my week long trip to Montreal and Saratoga and it's officially September 1st! Or...September 2nd truly...but just over half of you preferred to see Halloween emerge on September 1st as opposed to earlier or later, according to my poll last month...and though I'm a day late, I intend to have lots of Halloween awesomeness to post about until Nov. 1st! Starting with these new creations which I'm super excited about!

I love working with cotton, but I often find myself getting the itch to branch out into other mediums, if only for a day. From crochet to clay to sewing to jewelry making... The possibilities of things to try are endless! And I will certainly remain true to the medium that has brought me so much happiness, but it doesn't hurt to mix it up a little, right? The gourd guy above is made from paper mache and has chenille stem arms and legs...isn't he great? The rest of my new creations were made with sculpted heads and spun cotton bodies. They've got lots of detail and a quick flip through a Halloween book provided a refreshing amount of inspiration!

The pumpkin girl on the left is my favorite of the whole collection. I think it's because she has the same excited expression I had as a kid getting ready to go out trick or treating! And I believe I'm going to take a rare move and keep her for myself! But that's not to say that her two companions aren't dashing in their own right...

A witch needs black kitties to keep her company, doesn't she? The girl cat doesn't even mind getting hit in the face with her broom! :)

And I know I've never seen the devil, an acorn man and a gourd man hanging out together, but what the heck! Come to think of it, I've never seen an acorn man either!

What a happy Halloween party they all make! They are all one of a kind and many of these have been scooped up already, but you can still buy the remaining figures in my Etsy shop...I'll be listing them today and tomorrow. :)