ie

cards

So I said I was sort of back. Life is really busy these days, and so this blog here has been neglected. But that doesn't mean I haven't done anything! I have signed up for a fair in December, and after the initial nervousness it has just dawned on me that I actually have to make stuff to sell. Lots of it. Hmm. I have a few prototypes going, and once I have them all figured out I'll show you pictures. I have, however, finished making some business cards, that turned out decent considering my lacking knowledge of Illustrator. I got to use my new gadget too, to make round corners. That was my favorite part!

 

I'm (sort of) back!

After a long vacation (3 weeks.. what?), followed by trips with work and a trip to London I'm finally back home. It's good to be unpacked and it's good to have some normality. I'm excited to start making things again after a total of 6 weeks away from the sewing machine. I'll start posting regularly again soon.

On another note fall is finally here - the trees are loosing their yellow leaves, it's chilly outside, it rains quite a bit - all the ingredients for lots and lots of long nights of crafting and cuddling up inside with a glass of red wine or a cup of hot chocolate! Yay!

See you soon!

28

1. Today is my birthday,
2. I'm 28 years old.
3. When I was little I thought I would have it all figured out when I was 28.
4. I still haven't got a clue.
5. I sleep on my tummy with my feet on the outside of the bed,
6. and my head rests below the pillows.
7. I need things in pairs. 2, 28, 14. I can't take it if the stereo volume is 15 or 27.
8. I love the smell of hot asphalt and car fumes in the summer,
9. I love them smell of rain too,
10. but most of all I love the smell of Sniff.
11. I have 40 something pairs of shoes, 20 of them or more are sneakers.
12. I love all things with a banana flavor.
13. My favorite color is light baby blue (Robin's nest blue). I also love chocolate brown.
14. I love chocolate.
15. I try to be nice and do good every day, but I find that really, really hard sometimes.
16. I have a second job as a spin instructor,
17. but you wouldn't guess that looking at me.
18. I think the most valuable thing I've learned so far is to have big dreams on a small scale.
19. I went to a private school in high school, and loved it.
20. I need to smell before I taste. Sometimes I won't taste food after I've smelled it, even though it doesn't smell "bad".
21. I'm deadly afraid of sharks when I swim in the ocean, even though I've never seen Jaws.
22. I'm also really fascinated by sharks, and love to watch shark programmes on TV.
23. I love the ocean. The smell. The feel. The saltyness. The sound. The colors. The openness. The image. The feeling. The largeness.
24. I'm not a vegetarian, or an environmentalist, or a very good recycler. I still believe in animal welfare, taking care of our planet and reusing stuff that can be reused.
25. In 4 days I'm on my way to Bahamas. 
26. I haven't had a vacation in a year and a half.
27. I've worked every other weekend, in addition to my full-time job, ever since.
28. I'm not going to make a big deal out of my birthday. It will be filled with packing and preparing for vacation.

I not going to be posting much for the next three weeks. I'll be busy staying away from sharks and sleeping with my feet outside my (sun)bed.   

Puppillow

Today I decided to make Sniff (the best dog in the world) his own pillow. He does have a bed, but he told me he wanted a pillow in the hallway too. He likes to lie there once in a while. I had two extra pillows in the guest bedroom, that were just fluffy enough to make it a comfortable extra bed. It's made from some of my old jeans (nice and softened by hundreds of washes) that were too small worn out, and some of mr D's old shirts that were stained at the collars. Full recycling mode!

See feet and Sniff's beloved rat for scale.

I also started a blanket for him, to match the pillow. He likes to lie under something when he's relaxing. It's backed by fleece, has a double layer of batting and I'll try to hand "quilt" it. Sniff tells me he likes the colors :)

New banner

Since fall is right around the corner, I figured it would be appropriate to make a new fall banner. Also, I hope this will take attention away from the lack of crafting and posting. Or wait, playing around in Illustrator can be crafting, right? I would especially think so when one have no idea of what one is doing in Illustrator. :)

9 days till vacation!

Squeeeal!

I joined Kelli's Wristlet world swap earlier, and got paired up with Jessica of FunkyFinds. Friday I got my package, and what a package! It was so sweet, thoughtful and lovely in every way, it made me smile all the way through the weekend. I got it just as I was about to leave, so I opened it in the car on my down to my grandparents (hence the bonus Norwegian highway in the background of the photos). It had the cutest sticker on the outside, with Jessica's name and adress on it, that I think she designed herself. The packaging was so cool - see the dots? Love them. I squealed for the duration of the 2 hour trip, and ohhed and ahhed until I was asked to be quiet. (Then I continued on the inside, of course..:))

 

In addition to the wristlet, she included Adorn magazine (love it! Read every word during the weekend), the cutest book Hot Dogs for Sniff, complete with an inscription from her cute dog Abigail, Milkduds (all gone - I love them!), two cards from Emily of Black Apple (they are so sweet they make me hurt a little), the coolest foam letters IE, in the perfect shade of blue (they are now propped up on the bookshelf in my livingroom, and making me smile), a sweet little sewing machine in cardboard (this is the start of my own crafting space - it'll be the perfect doorsign once/if I get it), a funky post-it pad with a magnet on the back that is perfect for the fridge, and the sweetest card. The wristlet is so cool - I wore it Saturday and everyone wanted to know where I bought it. Such a hit, I'll wear it a lot. Ohh, and I forgot, she included the sweetest furry monkey stickers (my sister twisted my arm until she got half of them). This package was soo wonderful, I'm in awe someone I've never met, and have only talked to through e-mails, can put together such an amazing and thoughtful package. Thank you soo much Jessica! You totally spoilt me!

In other news, our weekend with my grandparents was wonderful and relaxing and fun. I took a swim every morning, even though it rained Saturday morning. Just look at this view:

Morning mist and muted colors, and a little bit foggy. Perfect, and such a nice way to start a day!

I'm off to enjoy looking at the cool things from my package once more, and then off to bed. Thanks again Jessica!

Shop Update

Just a quick post to say that I've updated my etsy shop, www.msie.etsy.com, with a few more items. Tomorrow I'm off to my grandparents' cabin by the sea for the weekend. Swimming in the sea, long walks with Sniff and good food and maybe some good wine. It'll be good!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

World Premiere!

(insert drumroll)

I've opened up my own Etsy shop: msie.etsy.com (can't get the link to work, sorry about that). I've talked about how I've made many bags, and that I needed a way to sell some of my stuff. The easiest way right now seemed like Etsy. I only have a few items up so far, but I'll try to keep adding as I finish stuff. Hope you'll all enjoy this little shop, and that I soon will have some free space on my desk again!

Polkadot friday

Quick post before I start my weekend! Earlier this week I finished a trial wallet/cardholder. I wanted to try making this, and I'm sporting it today to see if it works. It's a little on the small side, so I need to make future ones a tad bit bigger - but it does hold my creditcard, my driver's license, my gym card and a little bit of money. Love the polkadot fabric that I got from ReproDepot a while ago. Plus I got to try out my new snap fastener (is that the right word for it?) tool.. Looove that! What you see in the back is my package for Lena for the It's a wristlet world swap that I sent yesterday.

Plans for this weekend: 1. Clean up my apartment. 2. Make a dent in my pile of laundry. 3. Clean up my crafting space aka dining room table. 4. Spend some quality time with my sewing machine. 5. Eat and drink good stuff! 6. Sleep in. In that order (I think).

So long!

Monkey business

It's been all monkey business around here for the last couple of weeks. To much to do and too little time, not to mention it's been too hot!

Today I dragged myself back to the sewing machine, and whipped up this totebag for my sister. She's starting a new school in the middle of August, and being obsessed with monkeys I figured this was a nice back to school present. The outside is made of sockmonkey fabric and some brown, sturdy fabric, and the lining is plain white cotton. I know I like it, hopefully she will too!

It looks a little wobbly in the pictures, but it isn't in real life - promise!

I also finished my swap package for the It's a wristlet world swap today. It was so much fun putting this together. My crafting tends to be all over the place - I always have several projects going on at the same time, mostly with little direction. This was a good challenge - to create something according to a few guidelines. I guess sometimes I need a box to be able to think outside of the box. This package goes out tomorrow, Lena! I'll post pictures of it once I know it's landed safely!

A big thank you to Kelli for arranging this swap! Fun, fun.

So, hopefully no more monkey business around here from now on, but lots of happy times with sewing machine and computer.