     |
I’m very much looking forward to the Inaugural MakerFaire Detroit, and especially participating in the Craft Faire portion. I’m so happy to have been selected and a vendor, and I hope I’ll see you there! I’ll have children’s clothing and sewing patterns for sale. I’ve been working so hard to get the Patterns by Figgy’s Fall line completed that I haven’t made time to post. My Summer has been filled with pattern testing, getting the Fall line ready for release, planning, planning, and a little sewing. Julia (my stepdaughter) came home from Michigan State a few weeks ago, and she has a great summer job: her little sister’s nanny. She thinks it’s great, because, well, she gets to spend 3 days a week with her favorite little person. (And let’s face it, when even adults can’t find jobs around here, hers is pretty cushy). Ella thinks it’s great, because she doesn’t get to see Julia very often otherwise and she loves her big sister SO MUCH. We think it’s great because Ella will actually spend time with her (away from me) and we can trust her completely. This way, I can complete my deadlines for Patterns by Figgy’s without interruption 3 days a week, and PLAY four days a week. As for the sisters, so far they have gone to the Detroit Zoo 3 or 4 times, made crafts here at home, attended the Ann Arbor Hands On Museum, played at the park, had tea parties, gardened, and sewn dolly clothes and felt friends. In fact, this afternoon, Julia (without a pattern) whipped up a beautiful kimono for Ella’s dolly out of some leftover Kokka Bunny Cotton (originally used as a gift for my nephew) Those paper dollies in the background? They were a gift from Shelly to celebrate the end of diapers in our house! Yay! What a big summer – and it’s just begun! Today I had a great time with Amy at the Detroit Public Library “teaching” some kids how to put together a gadget cozy that Lish posted on Craftzine. We were really impressed with the HYPE program’s area in the Library and the teens (girls AND boys) were all really polite and good listeners. Naturally, I bit off more than I could chew by assisting a girl in creating a custom cozy for her IPod with a camera and stuff (what are those? I don’t know because I’m massively in love with my zuneHD)…and of course, I thought of a million better ways to accomplish what she wanted; both while she was putting it together and after she left. Amy and I played with Felt and ribbon and buttons to make ourselves each a sample. I definitely went “brighter” and cheerier than I would have were there not teens and tweens observing, but I have grown to really like it.
I discovered that I am NOT a great teacher, at least not in a tutorial-based setting, and that I am seriously nervous around teenagers! Surprising, isn’t it? Perhaps it’s because I never “fit in” anywhere as a teen myself? Maybe it’s because I’m used to being around my own-nearly-teen kids so often that I’ve forgotten everyone isn’t strange like we are? Maybe it’s because I agreed to figure out how to make something with a teenager when I didn’t know how to do it myself? Whatever the reason, I was really nervous at first. As the day flew by (you have no idea!) I started to feel more competent a teacher. The kids did a really nice job and I actually hope I have the opportunity to try again. WTH: Where have I been, you might be wondering? I have been right here, face in my tablet, preparing for the very exciting launch of our new Patterns by Figgy’s website next week! Sick Puppies: Also, we brought a virus home from Portland and it just kept lingering. Finally, Ella sniffed herself into her first ear infection and I slept on my back into my first respiratory infection. A week of antibiotics and a postponed deadline later, I’m back. Ella’s back, and my lovely friend Miranda is staying with us for a couple months, bringing yoga, lovingkindness, and female companionship (for Ella and me!) into my daily life. More Goodness: We learned to have a bedtime routine while we were away and it seems to be working rather nicely after our bumpy reintegration to our own household. Also, I had some nice mother-son time with Peter when we volunteered at the Handmade Detroit “Create your Own Canvas” activity booth in the Green Street Fair in Plymouth, MI. I am sometimes amazed by how funny (and 12) my sweetypeety has become. I took Ella back the next day for fun and to buy some goodies for myself from ReWare Vintage. She had her face painted and made some art!
J has been traveling and working away from home (boo-hoo), so Peter and Ella and I have been gardening, cooking, and generally spending a lot of time outside (when I don’t have my head buried in this laptop)! Sneak peeks for 3 Fall patterns forthcoming. We flew away from a rarely sunny Northville. (Check out that hideous front door!)
We love flying together. (No, she never naps).
We love mountains.
First, she didn’t want to leave the Sea-Tac Airport
Then, she took a loooooong bath at the Cedarbrook Lodge, our new favorite hotel in the Seattle Area.
We got to meet Jonah, who brought Ella an adorable bear! (She’ll have these for sale at the craft fair in PDX on May 2-3)
Ella fell asleep on my lap while we tried to have dinner with Jonah. I could have stayed up all night long chatting with her! Awoke to a lovely view from our room!
We took the Coast Starlight from Seattle to Portland and it was so lovely. (No, she did not eat that banana.)
Once we arrived, we had so much fun playing that we forgot to take pictures. Shelly took us to bolt where I promptly spent my fabric allowance. (Look ~ our patterns!)
and Modern Domestic (where she teaches)
and the Tin Shed. I also had the pleasure of meeting the Tangerine Samurai (with whom we’re working on a top secret project) and her lovely daughter, L.
I loved it so much there, that when I had the opportunity to meet up with Kelly (LOVE HER) and her family, we met at the Tin Shed again. Here everyone is, before I dragged Kelly and S. into Modern Domestic to drool with me.
Why did I go to alone to meet Kelly? Because Ella and Jules and Franco and Shelly and Adam were ALL SICK. They are all on the mend now, but we decided to stay an extra week to enjoy each other a little more Shelly is working on a post right this moment about our Beach Bum Hoodie and Board Shorts tutorial. We’re going to show you how you can make it in two different ways, and hopefully answer some questions we’ve had at Patterns by Figgy’s. I’ll be back later. You may have noticed my blog was broken. Thanks to the brilliant and generous Ralph, I can blog again. I’ll also be moving hosts to someplace more reliable, so hold tight! |
|
Copyright © 2010 my dharma…..work in progress - All Rights Reserved Register
Posts Feed |
|
(Plus, J. is traveling and we’d be alone at home).