here’s the latest round of fabric that i got from SCRAP. sometimes i can’t believe what people get rid of…their loss is my (your) gain! i love that place. have you been yet???

i made this petite set of cuffs for my friend’s birthday gift. i used one skinny end of a necktie scrap and some material that i got from SCRAP for the ruffles. the snaps are really cute and sparkly…kind of like my friend =) in this picture, they remind me of a pair of jellyfish.

my favorite thing about online orders is packaging them like gifts. i know when i receive an order and it is packaged in some special way, i appreciate it so much more! for my latest order, i sewed together pages from an old, gently used coloring book from the 50’s (that i bought from SCRAP). i placed the order inside the pages and then sewed it shut like a neat little package! isn’t it adorable? and it’s a great way to recycle books that would have went straight to the landfill.

one of my favorite vending opportunities this past year was the 2009 Holiday Gifty Show at the Crucible in Oakland. it was my first show that i did alone (my man was sick) and it forced me to entertain myself more than usual. i ended up meeting all kinds of wonderful vendors and customers. everyone was so enthusiastic about the waffle back vests that i actually sold out of them and took three special orders for more! here is the one i made for Nieves on a trade for some of her wonderful bodycare items.

how many pin cushions is too many pin cushions?

i bleed for my art!

i finally got the right dress form and started Nieves’s custom vest:

i made this necklace from thrift store chains and an antique key from England. it is available for sale at Trunk, 544 Haight St. San Francisco, CA

i made this necklace from thrift store chain and two antique keys from England. it is available for sale at Trunk, 544 Haight St. San Francisco, CA

if you’d like to donate neckties, old jewelry, or fabric to me, please email me at: micheLLe@sewisyourface.com

this morning, after our creative support meeting, my good friend ellen and i went to scrap to see what treasure we could find. scrap is an excellent resource for artists and crafters, especially if they are into reusing and recycling. today was a gold mine day for me. i went there expecting nothing and left feeling like i had just robbed the place! upon stepping ten feet into the warehouse, we found a bunch of really old games and puzzles that were in pretty good shape. after looking inside almost every box and contemplating what i could possibly use these relics from the past for, i came up with the idea to use some of the pieces as hang tags on my upcycled garments for sale. i mean, why spend a bunch of money on printing tags when these game pieces all had wonderful, colorful, childhood reminders in the form of illustrations on them? i figure i can either hand write directly on the back or print information (like care instructions) on stickers and stick those to the back of the pieces. either way, i think it’s a grand idea! here are some pics of the games and some of their pieces that i made off with:

oh, and did i forget to mention the GIANT pile of ties that i got for a price so low that i’m afraid that if i repeat it, they’ll come to my door and take them away from me!

sew, i decided to stay in and sew last night instead of going to a hoop jam. sometimes that’s a really tough choice for me but look what came out of it! this is the cutest, PINKEST, vest ever. it’s a size medium with the flexibility to fit many body shapes (up to a bust size of 38). it’s the classic waffle back that seems to be popular with the ladies. i used a thick, pink, yarn-like thread and a really cute stitch, that is shaped like hearts, to pull this valentine-themed vest together. instead of using my usual thrift store-harvested, metal hardware for the closure, i went a little more simplistic and used the small ends from two of the ties to tie the vest closed in the front. this allows the vest to be more adjustable in the fit and, in my opinion, makes the vest look a bit more feminine. nothing says “I Love You” like a pink valentines day vest sewn with little hearts all over it! this vest is a one of a kind (as are all my vests) and will be for sale at Trunk @ 544 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA.

well, until recently my ties were stored in bins, bags, and piles on the floor. not very efficient, i know. it would take me *forever* to find matching ties for projects and i’d have to make new piles in the middle of the floor and then throw them all back in the bin when i was done. i never had a way to keep them organized and they tend to wrinkle badly when left in piles! what a nightmare, i know. a friend of mine came over, looked at my sewing space and declared “you should just build strong racks that come out from the wall to hold your ties”. what a brilliant idea! we quickly sold the little couch that was taking up valuable storage space in my sewing studio. then, we went to home depot, bought a drill, some pre-cut hardwood, and elbow brackets to make this simple, yet oh-so-functional tie rack! donovan did a great job building it and so far, it’s holding about 1/3 of my actual inventory of ties. we are thinking of putting some cross pieces of wood on it so i will have more space to hang more ties. we even left room at one end to keep adding arms (in case my tie collection is growing faster than i can sew). it’s such a pleasure to have them in plain sight and grouped by color or design. it takes the frustration out of picking ties for a project, keeps them relatively wrinkle free, and frees up much of my time that is better left for creating. am i allowed to be this efficient???

**if you, or anyone else you know are interested in donating neckties to me for my art, please email me at micheLLe@sewisyourface.com. i will happily reimburse you for any shipping charges!

of my latest racer back vest made from neckties! it fits her as if i made it with her in mind. i love it when that happens!