Art Walk coming up

Fabulous news! Tessa's friend (I can't remember his name or else I'd do a shout-out) made us a poster for the show this coming weekend "A Little Summer Bazar" which myself, Tessa, and Samantha Kramer of Homegrown Skinny are going to show off and sell our excellent crafts. Unfortunately my computer is being dumb so I can't upload it. (SORRY TO THE FANS). But its gonna be all over downtown come manana!
Info: August 3rd from 7-10pm in front of Gaileys Breakfast Cafe (Walnut St.)




I'll be downtown in the afternoon b/c Pastiche owner Carla Stine is hiring me to do a custom job of pillow covers for a client of hers. score! Eventually I am going to do stockings for the Christmas season for her amazingly adorable store as well... check out the pics and head to her site (which I would make a link to but for some reason my computer doesn't like that either): www.pastichedecor.com

In other news, Jeff starts back with the Mystery Hour this weekend! I can't wait the show is SO GOOD. (And I don't just say that b/c he's by hubby). Here is the info from the "event" page on facebook:


Season Two of the Mystery Hour begins Saturday, August 4th at 10:15! We've got big shoes to fill from Season One when we were voted 'Only Late Night Talk Show in Springfield!" Needless to say we were honored.

Here is the lineup for the next show:

GUESTS:
J. FOTSCH AND DAWN MCCLAIN, from 96.5's 'Fotsch and McClain' Morning Show

SARAH WILSON-DEWALD, Producer, CMT's 'Trick My Truck'

EDDIE GUMUCIO, Musical Guest

Plus: We'll find out, Is the Skinny Improv Theater Haunted? Things I've Noticed, and Hilarious Comedy Bits.

Cost: $1.00. Seriously, that's all it costs


Well, I'm out of things to talk about for the moment. I need to price some items for the show.

Block party

What a crazy weekend! Saturday we hosted a BLOCK PARTY with our neighbors, Evan and Virginia. Jeff and Evan had passed out tons of flyers and had about a 5% return for who actually showed up, but that's okay. The Swinks, Dan (Jeff's asst. host for the Mystery Hour), and a bunch of Evan and Virginia's friends came. It also rained in the middle of it (more like toriential down-pour) and Jeff and Joe broke out the kayaks to float in the ditch... bad influences on all the kids at the party, i might say... Later Saturday night Jannah, Leah, and I went to the BODIES exhibit in Branson, which I highly reccommend, then to Branson Landing for some good Mexican food.

So I promised pictures from the last stint of sewing I did on Wednesday and here they are (at the top). Most of this stuff is going to the show this weekend for First Friday, which I am getting a bit excited about. (the yellow tank is on my ETSY store--see like under "my websites). Oh how I hope I sell some stuff... Tessa and Sam are both incredibly good at their craft and I'm a tad nervous... it won't last too long. I rock.

WA-PAH!

I don't know why the title of this is "WA-PA!" I sorta just liked the way it sounded.
SO yesterday I got my first order from someone I completely don't know. Problem was--the tank she ordered runs a bit small so I had to go find a new one to put the same thing on. (well, not the SAME thing-- its really close--actually better). Not only did I make her a brand new hooty-owl tank, but I made another one in yellow to sell at the show, and a gray tank with a completely different applique that is totally awesome, AND a new tote! I'll have pictures to update everyone on tomorrow hopefully.

In other news, I signed up for my first semester of graduate classes last week and am STILL waiting on my advisor to approve the schedule. She's awesome... she sent me an e-mail today telling me that she doesn't have the GA schedule ready yet because she usually just waits until classes start for that. She threw in there that she knows it likely makes me crazy. The woman knows me well already.

And one more thing-- I was talking to a good friend last night who does education stuff for the Arts Council here in town and we got into a conversation about Craft fairs. she was trying to talk me into applying for Cider Days to have a booth and I confided in her that I was scared of being part of the "craft" population around here... you know... country-bumpkin crafty-ness? Lots of maroons and navy blues and whites and gigham? YUCK! I am fine with being thought of as a grandma-y-craftster, but not a "crafty person"... you know what I mean? There is such a difference between 'grandma' and 'crafty'

Of course I don't know why I call it "grandma-y" when I am nowhere close to even having my own children yet, let alone calling myself "grandma-y". I guess I just like fabrics that are "grandma-y..." ah, I digress again.

Cheers to you...

After my last post I've been thinking more and more about connecting with people who different types of crafts. When I first started this blog I had just met a fellow-bag maker, Sam, who runs Homegrown Skinny. She advised me to get a Flickr site and a blog, so here I am, addicted to the Internet even more than I was before. (thanks.)Once I started down this road-- I haven't been ablet to stop finding amazing indie artists and collectives on the web...

So number one shout out goes to Sam of Homegrown Skinny. You're awesome, you've helped me a lot, you comment on my pics and blogs, and shoot--i even bought one of your beautiful bags. Hopefully we will get together soon to meet. Here is some of her work: (click on her link under "favorite spots to go").






Second shout out goes to a fellow ETSY seller Lisa Price of Artgoodies. (http://etsy.com/artgoodies.) Never talked to her of course, but her prints are cheeky and just my style. When I get on my "favorites" through etsy, I can't help but go to her site and see what she's added on there.






There are wayyyyyy too many favorites to highlight all of them, so I'll choose just one more for this post, and make some more shout outs later. Holla number 3 goes to Nichole Chilton of the Moxie Cinema. When I first started sewing just talking to her about making things (even for the short time we did) helped me to know that I can DO THIS. Head to her blog on the left link "nichole chilton's bloggy gloggy" or whatever.

Things I can't do...

So I tend to be in awe of things I can't produce in my work as MitchandWinnie. One of those things that i know nothing about but would love to learn is screen printing my own designs onto something. Mind you, I can't draw... but I know plenty of people who can (a-hem, Mara Dockery with the design of the MitchandWinnie logo--brilliant!). So when I came across Boygirlparty I haven't been able to stop looking at it since. I mean, just LOOK at this stuff.


owl notebook that rocks my face off.

the rest of the stuff I can't copy images of (she has them copyrighted so i hope i don't get sued for the one that's not) so you should just head to the store. its awesome... from hand mirrors at $6.50 to tee shirts, bags, and notebooks. And its not badly priced either. (link is on the blog roll/ sites I visit section).

Chicago in two days.... GO!

So my crazy friends and I decided to visit Chicago (8 hours away, mind you) in one weekend. I didn't actually think we'd do it--just one of those times I thought we'd talk about it but never get around to it, but I was wrong. We picked a date about three weeks ago and went for it hard core this weekend. boy am I sleepy (and sore!). I'll save you all the torture of looking through lots of pics, but I will plug my flickr site for you to see them (see link top left corner).

Anyway-- to make a long weekend fit into this tiny blog-- we got there at 11:30pm and immediately hit the town of Wrigleyville which is PACKED with 20-somethings all out for a drunk time. Went to some bar below Amanda Swink's place, then promptly to a quieter (not Brittney and Michael Jackson songs BLARING from the speakers right by our heads) place next to Improv Olympic. Saturday Jeff and I hit up Millennium Park, the Cubs game (LOVE Wrigley field! LOVE), and then to, sadly, Navy Pier with the other million visitors of the city that weekend. I have to say, the whole day was great until I ordered the "big green salad" at this restaurant we were at at Navy Pier and it came out a giant bowl of iceberg lettuce. I was pissed... but I digress... Sunday we went to brunch (Chicago people are obsessed with the not-breakfast not-lunch thing, and they'll wait an hour and a half to get it, dang-it!) and then my favorite, H&M. Oh god how i love that place... sigh.

anyway, in other news, returning to work was good today because we hired someone for the position I lost under me last week. Also, Mara finished my LOGOS for Mitch and Winnie! Do you like? Does it express my "style" well?

KITCHENWARE!

The second pic. sorta looks like a skirt, but its not, its an apron. Cute huh?

I don't feel like typing much. Am tired b/c work has been pretty busy and we're headed to Chi-town tomorrow for a little mini-break with friends. I am actually pretty excited... but i haven't packed yet. will do. now.

i just keep going and going and going...

So yesterday the person who teaches KLASS, (the afterschool program I run) put in her resignation. I was and am kinda bummed about it, especially being right before I start graduate school to focus more on that next phase in life. But hey, a girl can hope someone amazing and wonderful will show up, right? right.

so today I was sorta in this funk. Its been off and on, actually, and has been residing more at work than anywhere else. I can't really put my finger on it though... Anytime I get that way there is a particular medicinal thing I can do... Two things, really. Number 1 is good conversation with a friend. Number two, you guessed it, making something cool on the sewing machine. So that's what I did tonight. (And last night, too, if you count spending three hours on a shirt by yourself as therapy). My friend Tessa came over and we worked on our projects together. She is awesome at putting hand stiched appliques on tee-shirts, so she was working on this tee called "I need my space," while i started making a bag out of a great pattern I got out of a flea market score this past weekend. Oh and I LOVE this bag. LOVE it. Its even better than "my bag" i posted a couple of days ago that's green/citron/brown. I think i'll sell it though--maybe both...

beyond that though--- making new friends is just fun, especially when we have something in common. Tessa is great to talk to, open and honest, and we're a lot alike. Oh, and we're getting ready to open our own booth/table at the upcoming First Friday Art Walk outside of Gaileys. i think we'll be posting flyers downtown and everything, and we're gonna call it "A Little Bazar". I can't wait.

So I leave you with a pic of my new favorite bag, at least until the one Sam (see the link "homegrown skinny") is sending me in the mail comes tomorrow or the next day--then I'll probably have a new love.

The first anniversary project report

This is the beginning of my first anniversary project. we were going to decorate this awesome door that is in our rafters in the garage, but realized it was nailed to them. So in the middle of our first anniversary we take off to my favorite flea market to find "the perfect project" to work on. We came up with this ladder and window that we're gonna decorate and put on the side of our shed. I swear its gonna look good.



This is me sewing tonight. Jeff walked in taking pictures saying "we have all these pictures of your work but none of you working." this is the first. I wish I wish I wish I had a room to work on my stuff, but the computer desk has to work.




DON'T LOOK AT MY FACE! ICK! Nah, i'm just kidding, i don't care that much, but look more at the wonderful awesome shirt I created, k? Isn't it rad?

Anniversary Day!

Hello all... today is my one year anniversary!
I've been thinking about it today... what has been the best part of the year? What has been the coolest thing JEff and I do on a regular basis? What could we do more of? less of.... etc.
Today we went on a bike ride to Gaileys and then rode around to a flea market (where I scored some cheap vintage fabric!) and a few of our fave. spots in Springfield. I think later we're going to work on an old door that is up in the rafters of our garage and make it into a fun piece of art. Jeff of course is asleep though so we'll see.

So this week I made a new bag I want to show off. I got the fabric from Pastiche... its a vintage tablecloth and i looooooove it.





...oh yeah, and i think i'll go for the theme of "Vintage Hipster"--- making things that are old and making them new and different. What do you think?

I need your help...

Help me... I need to go for a "theme" in the items I sew. Should I be more hipster/indie/chic OR vintage/handmade? Does the difference between the two make sense? The first one would be a little more trendy meets indie-cool... the second would be antique store meets sewing clothes sorta theme. I could go either way, but I need a hook or a type of style to go for that will lead the message of my goods. Look at my work and tell me what you think:

new sewing fun things

yeyyyyyy.



i made three new things (wristlet, apron for my friend, and pillow) in the past week. my little sewing hands have been busy. Now that grad school is starting up in a month or so I feel like I need to turn the heat on...

updates: Tessa and I are going to put together atable/booth to have outside Gaileys for the next First Friday. I'm pumped about that. Also, I am trying to decide as to whether or not I want to sell my stuff at White Rabbit in Iowa City, or Revivial. Tough choice. Any suggestions/ideas?

Iowa City shopping has it all

So I was looking up one of my favorite stores in Iowa City, Ia (Jeff's hometown) on google and stumbled across a Lucky magazine (well, website) article featuring my favorite stores there. Let me mention that I love shopping in obscure places, so this group of articles made me smile.
You must read--and if you get a chance to go there anytime readers-- my picks are Revival, Akar, White Rabbit, and Active Endeavors (not mentioned in the article).

http://www.luckymag.com/cityguides/iowa_city_ia/subindex_20070702

things are getting crazy

So... last night i head down to Commercial street for my first meeting with it and First Friday art walk. Went into this adorable store and bought some stuff.. and a whole array of things happened after that.

i should back the bus up and state that the past two weekends my husband has been out of town. Last weekend it was a wedding, this weekend a show in Dallas... I have done so much housework and yardwork to keep myself busy that a little outing to commercial street by myself was to engage with others on a lonely Friday night...

So i went in and the store owner and i got to chatting--i might start selling my stuff at her place. Then there
was a converstation with someone from Iowa city who owns her own D.I.Y. home-made stuff store called White Rabbit (www.whiterabbitgallery.com), and then today I got to talking with a fellow clothes-maker who wants to set up a booth on the street during the next first friday.

What is a seamstress to do?

its always been my dream to sell stuff and be all indie cool... but this was a tidal wave of options! we'll see if any of them take off.

This being my first post I should also plug my ETSY site and my new flickr site where you can see my actual work. have fun. leave comments. be merry.

http://mitchandwinnie.etsy.com
http://flickr.com mitch and winnie