Hands off, ladies.
{Cool Charity Alert} For each item sold in the month of March created with Japanese fabric, Cheyne will donate 10% of the sale price to the GlobalGiving targeted relief fund. Just search "Japanese" while in Cut Out and Collect's Etsy to see these items. Photos by Bella Pop Photography
I noticed that it had a cute ribbon and note written on a chunk of wood, so I knew it wasn't trash or junky spammy stuff. What I never expected was to open it and find this: 
I nearly had a fabric scrap stroke! Big thanks to my gal (and across-the-street neighbor) Laura of laura davis design lab for giving me these amazing scraps. I am particularly in love with the houndstooth and ticking. Laura is a furniture designer who makes the sweetest aprons and embroidered pillows. Another couple of massive shout outs are in order. First to my close friend Cheyne of Cut Out and Collect, who is not only a daily force of friendship, but who continuously gives me her sweet fabric scraps. Cheyne is a designer and seamstress who makes high quality bags and purses out of super secret special fabric (wink wink). She also runs the Coffee Haus in Arlington where I sell some Tefi goods, as well as Downtown Roasters, a new Etsy shop selling delish roasted coffee beans. 
Pictured: zip pouch by Cut Out and Collect, pillow by laura davis design lab, bloomers by Three Yellow Starfish 
Big thanks to my girl Pam (the artist behind Pamela Michelle) for inviting me to shop at the Fossil employee store last week. The design and retail company, headquartered right here in the Dallas metroplex, opened its doors to guests of employees, and Pam hooked me up something good! Best. Lunch break. Ever. I got loads of stuff - wallets, handbags, shoes, sunglasses, graphic tees - all with a retail value of a million dollars and I paid something like a penny. It was sooooo fun. 
Thanks Pampers! Have fun at Renegade next week!! Sell a million stuffs! *excitedly waves goodbye*
Me, Jen, and big mound of tater swirls 
Ian and Jason taking in the sights and sounds 
Autumnal Sweets ACEO $10.50 by Loxly Hollow 
All the Fun of the Fair photograph $25 by Laura Evans
Funny thing happened on Friday. Awhile back I saw a post from my friend Patricia of Karmacrochet for a giveaway she was doing on the blog Love.Obsess.Inspire. She asked us to check it out and comment. So I did. Aaaaand...I won the giveaway!! I got an email from Alexi, the gal who writes the blog and my reply, in this order: Holy cow! I know Patricia! How cool! Saturday night at Larry's during our Etsy Dallas 2nd birthday party, Patricia handed me her basket of goodies. My favorite items are the washcloths that we're going to use during Ian's bathtime. 
btw - In the first pic, you can see Larry's super mega awesome Yellow Submarine fused glass art. Love it!
I met Linda over 25 years ago. We were in the children's choir at First Presbyterian in downtown Dallas. We went on countless youth group trips together, camping, having fun. My favorite: choir trip, Montreat, NC in 1987. Today, Linda and I share the jewelry-making passion. I ran into her at my very first craft show back in 2006, and we've kept in touch since. Enjoy my interview with her below. Are her pieces beautiful, or what? What was the first handmade object you made? I think it was a little wreath made out of a pipe cleaner and plastic beads. Or maybe it was a reindeer made from three clothespins? When did you start making jewelry? I picked up jewelry making as a hobby in 2004 (I'd been on-again-off-again up till that point), and I decided to make it a business in 2006. That's when I opened my Etsy shop and started going to craft fairs. Tell me about your "real" job. A leadership insights business analyst in the business innovations department for an international snack food company. That sounds so technical, doesn't it? 
How do you balance your jewelry business with other things in your life? I end up working in spurts. I'll spend an entire weekend making jewelry. Or during the week I design in the evenings and then end up making that design another evening. Jewelry is a creative outlet for me, and if I don't get enough time to create, my mood definitely sinks! I try to make sure that doesn't happen. Where do you find your inspiration? Honestly? Everyday life. I once received a free set of beads from a lampwork artist that were technically wonderful, but she felt the color combination was a bit of a stretch. I let them sit in my bead box for almost a year, and then one day I pulled [them] out and turned them into a necklace that makes the color combination successful. I will place limitations like that on myself specifically to flex my design muscles. What's your workspace/studio like? My work space is my "comfy chair" in the living room. My jewelry supplies are in bins that fit under the coffee table. When I'm working, the ottoman, coffee table, and a TV tray are all occupied with wire, tools, beads, etc. It's a pain to keep everything organized, but for now it's what I've got. Tell me about a favorite piece you've made. This is still my favorite necklace, made with this focal bead by Sarah Hornik (below). This was one of the first beads Sarah made after a trip to Murano. This bead does a good job representing the magic - love, light, freedom, whimsy, and happiness - that we all felt during our time in Italy. I feel extra confident and happy when I wear this piece. I suppose my emotional connection serves to elevate the design and my feelings when I wear it. 
Any future plans for Linda Lee Studio? At this point, I want to continue growing the business online through my Etsy site and blog. I enjoy writing, and I'm getting better about updating my shop. I'd like to continue that trend. Shop: http://lindaleestudio.etsy.com/ Blog: http://lindaleestudio.blogspot.com/ Location: Frisco, Texas
Cheyne is a friend and fellow Etsy Dallas member, and is the gal behind Cut Out & Collect. She has a keen eye for delicious color palettes, and one day I plan to break into her studio and steal every yard of her fabric stash. Last year I bought a blue scooter wallet from her shop, and this year I came back for more. Actually, my BFF Jen did when I told her THIS is what I want for my bday. Whether you are into pandas, mushrooms, deer, or Vespas, there is likely a zipper pouch, wallet or bag for you in Cheyne's shop. If you're in the Dallas area, stop by The Coffeehaus in Arlington. While Cheyne's whipping you up a latte you can shop for local handmade goodies including her items and my stuffs, too! Shop: http://www.cutoutandcollect.etsy.com/ Blog: http://www.orsewitseams.blogspot.com/ Location: Arlington, Texas
I start by using a template to cut my pieces of fusible glass in a square. The pendant pieces pictured have a background of black Spectrum 96 glass with a foreground of various Spectrum fusible colors. I have applied the same techniques to opaque, cathedral, clear, and dichroic glass as well. Depending on the style of bail or snap-ring used to attach the piece to the necklace cord, I may also drill a 2 mm hole for the snap ring before ever attaching the foreground piece and before firing. Once my pieces are cut to a uniform size, I use a tool called an Air Pen to apply my kanji characters. The Air Pen is air-operated and was originally developed for silk painting. It forces any kind of liquid through a very fine needle-shaped tip. The tool comes with various sized tips for liquids of varying viscosity and for thinner/thicker lines. I tend to use the finer tips to apply dark Glassline glass enamels. Once the kanji characters are applied and have fully dried (just a few minutes), I use gel-glue to glue the foreground piece to the background. I keep the glue off of dichroic glass because it tends to discolor the dichroic upon firing. I then assemble the pendants on the kiln shelf of my Paragon Fusion-10 or my Paragon Caldera and tack-fuse the pendants, insuring that the square pendants don’t excessively round while firing. Once the pieces have cooled in the kiln, I attach the bail or snap ring and then ready the pendant for final sale. I hope you enjoy this technique and adapt to your own work! www.kesslercraftsman.com/
This may be my last show for awhile SO PLEASE COME SEE ME and take advantage of all my great "Preggie Promotions." I'll have some items discounted up to 20%, a free pair of earrings for any purchase of $100 or more, AND a free necklace giveaway - give me your email address and I'll sign you up for a drawing to win one of my handmade beaded necklaces!
And don't miss out on some of my new items: fabric wall art, coffee cup cozies, coasters, and Kitty Nippers (copyright) catnip toys. Wow!
In addition to selling my own handmade goods, I'll be working the Etsy Dallas table with my fellow EDers helping out with a fun "progressive craft" project. Shoppers will be encouraged to make their own crafty bookmark to take home with them - at no charge! Look for the Etsy Dallas table to participate and also to enter to win all sorts of free goodies. Celebrate the handmade movement in Dallas!
Bend-the-Rules Sewing by Amy Karol 30 Colorful Quilt & Patchwork Projects by Denyse Schmidt In Stitches by Amy Butler Simple Sewing by Lotta Jansdotter 
Last Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson Pretty Little Patchwork by Larks Books (comp.) Sweet Needle Felts by Jenn Docherty Sew & Stow by Betty Oppenheimer I can't wait to get started!
Olives update: 52
So, I'd like to take this time to shine the spotlight on a few who I have had the honor to work with to make Dallas a crafty-loving, artistically-inspired, magical little hamlet. My fabulous Etsy Dallas leadership team: 
Brenda of B.Liscious Photography - for keeping us in posters and flyers, and for managing our blog and keeping us all on track Carrie of Atom-In - for her countless hours planning and marketing, and for being our Crafty Queen (Look for Carrie at the free Make-&-Take craft booth at the BBQ!) Larry, The Kessler Craftsman - for his expertise and YES attitude, and for opening his beautiful home to the BBQ Pam of Pamela Michelle - for designing ED's promotional pieces and super-awesome logo, and all the marketing and planning she does Randi, The Designing Diva - for her brains, business aplomb, and keeper of our dough Mandi, Scribbles - for getting our goody bag promos together and bringing in Magic the Magician to our BBQ! And thanks to the following for making our upcoming 1st Annual Etsy Dallas Beer-B-Q the best FREE indie event in town: The House of Dang! - These boys were the first to jump on board with the 25 goody bag promos, and continue to be leaders in the indie handmade and vintage movement in Dallas. DJ Modchap - for spinning his jazzy lounge tunes at the BBQ from 11am-2pm for FREE! Josh of Bending Light Studio - for hooking us up with DJ Modchap in the first place 
Garrett Heinrichs Band - These downhome boys from Fort Worth will be playing their alt-country tunes from 2:30-5pm at the BBQ, also for FREE! Armhole - The guys at Armhole do it up right. Without hesitation, they offered to donate 25 BBQ trucker hats for the goody bags. I picked them up this morning and let me tell you - I WANT TO KEEP ONE FOR MYSELF!! whaaaaa..... James of One-Up Designs - One of these days you'll see his work in Architectural Digest, Dwell, and ReadyMade. But until then, James is donating his time and vinyl to making the coolest directional signs ED has ever seen- for FREE! And the most awesomest Tefi Award goes to: Mr. Dylan Dowdy, The Grillman - Dylan has been a huge asset to Etsy Dallas from the start; his contributions are too many to mention. Be sure to give him a big wet one at the BBQ! He'll be the one grillin' away and making sure you young'uns keep away from the keg. Thanks to everyone else I may have inadvertantly left off this list. Thanks especially to the great line-up of Etsy Dallas members participating in our 1st Annual Beer-B-Q. Look for a separate blog entry highlighting these great crafters coming soon...
