New stuff in spaz-made: Hambly

I just added some fresh made robot art pieces to my Etsy Shop, spaz-made. I just love Hambly, so when I found some rub-ons while unpacking the crate after the CHA show, I just had to put them to good use.





Allison Abad at Hambly is one of my favorite designers and I love what she makes out of the rub-ons, papers, and overlays that she designs for Hambly as well. The pillows she made that she shows off in this post are rad. The girl JUST got her first sewing machine so I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. I wonder if Quilt Market is in her future... Anyway, here are some of the new items I have added to spaz-made my etsy shop, and a few more I will be adding soon!

Reason #3: Paco

Reason #3 (for not being sad about issue #10 being the last printed issue of CRAFT Magazine):

There is something much, much bigger to be sad about...the death of Ana Poe's dog Paco, of Paco Collars fame.

I was so excited when I opened the last issue of CRAFT Magazine to page 111 at random. It was a great surprise to see Ana Poe and Paco and a how-to article on making dog collars the Paco way. Ever since I met Ana and Paco last summer I've had so much respect for Ana and her business (and Paco of course), and I was thrilled to see them featured in one of the coolest craft mags.

Last summer when my dog Alabama was still a puppy, my S.O. somehow found the Paco Collars website. He called me over to check it out. We read everything on that site including the blog from start to finish in just the one sitting. From the moment we saw the first pictures of Paco in a huge sombrero, we decided Paco was the raddest dog ever. (The pictures of Paco in pants further confirmed this belief.) And we absolutely had to get our dog Bama, a pit bull coon hound mix, a Paco Collar of her very own!

However, we were absolutely broke at the time. But that didn't stop Ana from helping us make our dream come true. We read on the Paco Collars website somewhere that she allowed her customers to help her with her prep work and in doing so, pay for the collar they want to buy in time instead of money. Ana taught us how to bevel and dye the edges and had us conditioning the leather. I had a blast hanging out with her and Tim, as well as Paco and a few other kick-backed canines. Then on my birthday, Bama got a very special gift...


...And I got a matching bracelet! I picked out the winged star conchos from the supplier catalog but the design of the collar was all Ana and I love what she did. If you'd like a better look at it, check out the product page for the Alabama Collar. I believe there may even still be a photo of Bama there if you click the "View additional images" link.

Thank you Paco for inspiring such slick designs and such high-quality products! You'll be missed. At least I know where I can find a photo of you in that sombrero - it always makes me smile!

Why I am not sad that CRAFT Magazine has printed it's final issue

Of course I was sad when I picked up the very last printed issue of CRAFT Magazine. I've loved this magazine from the beginning and have been lucky enough to get to read every issue. I had a ball at O'Reilly Media's (CRAFT Magazine's parent company) Maker Faire a few years ago when I was lucky enough to set up and work at the C&T Publishing booth there. I also attended Natalie Zee Drieu's demo-nar on the Indie Craft movement at CHA last year and of course seized the opportunity to chit-chat with all the CRAFT Magazine peeps in attendance. CRAFT Magazine and Craftzine.com really deserve a post all their own right now, but I can't write the sad and lamenting post I'm supposed to upon hearing the news about #10 being the very last printed issue. And there are two reasons for this:

REASON #1: I am actually really happy for CRAFT. They still have a booming blog which I imagine will only be getting better, and...well, it's CRAFT! They have their very tech-savvy fan-base/ market wrapped around their little online finger anyway. They aren't going to lose anyone! The only difference now that they are online only is they won't have to jock so hard for advertisers. Which couldn't have been much fun at all.

Doing away with the print version of the magazine probably made great business sense and the forethought that took place there is really something to be commended! Especially at times like this when other awesome magazines like Domino are dying left and right and craft market magazine giants like CK Media can't seem to offload their wares fast enough. It seems like CRAFT is adapting where other magazines just weren't able to evolve fast enough. It's a perfect example of "survival of the fittest" and the way I see it, CRAFT Magazine is at the top of its game. Which is something to celebrate, right.

and REASON #2: When I finally got to sling open issue #10 (The Very Last Issue), the page I just happened to see first was wonderful page 111. The reason this page is so wonderful is because Ana Poe and her truly one-of-a-kind pit bull Paco, from Paco Collars here in Oakland, are on it - what an awesome surprise!! More about Ana and Paco in my next post...

My First Completed Quilt

I have to toot the horns of Alex Anderson and Liz Aneloski. If it wasn't for the straight-forward no-nonsense approach found in Super Simple Quilts #1, I may have never made my first quilt. Now that the quilt is finished, it will soon be delivered to its new owner, who is a 1-month old very important delivery herself.

It took me three years to approach quilting because I didn't think I had the discipline or perfectionism to get a project done properly or without losing interest along the way. I am the queen of quick, easy projects – in the past my crafts had to accommodate my short attention span and desire for somewhat instant gratification.

There is a myriad of explanation missing from Super Simple Quilts which is precisely what makes it such a great book for a beginner like me. It tells you what you need to do to create a quilt you like the quick, easy, and stylish way. The hardest part is choosing your fabrics! And that's still really fun because you don't even have to decide which of the three quilts in the book you're going to be doing until you start cutting. I used fabric from Piece O'Cake's fabric line, Elanor's Picnic. As to which fabric would go where - I changed my mind a hundred times and had to consult a few of the experts in my office. Despite lots of mistakes - some i fixed, some i didn't - I am very happy with my final result. (And I am already working on my next quilt top!)

Etsy Shop Open!

My Etsy shop, Spaz-made, has been open since Christmas so I think I will finally go ahead and blog about it. "Why wait so long?" you ask. The thing is, I probably never would have opened shop if it wasn't for the fact that I just moved into a super small new space and I can barely find room for storing craft supplies let alone finished crafts I don't really have space or use for. My store inventory is currently residing in our little aluminum shed out back. I have always wanted to have a store on Etsy but I was never happy with the way it looked and what it's name was. It's amazing how as soon as I am feeling pressured to get rid of everything I don't need, I come up with the perfect design and a name I like: Spaz-made. Since I am one and it is! I have already sold two items, can you believe it? Here are some pics of the other items in my store...



everything currently in my store falls under the wooden box category. I had a great time using Hambly rub-ons, papers, and acrylic overlays in these projects, as well as good old acrylic paint, spray enamal, and a lot of sandpaper!






Check out the rest of my handmade items at www.dspaz.etsy.com. Mention this blog post and I'll give you a break on shipping! and if you buy three items, I will pay your shipping! But only if you live in the USA. Sorry.

CHA next week and Renegade Craft Fair in SF

I haven't written in a while because I have been so busy at work (and at home AFTER work) preparing for CHA. I leave for Chicago on Tuesday and booth set-up begins the following morning. I am excited about the show - I think our booth is going to look great! We are doing some special things with the Fantastiques characters with regards to booth design/ decor and I think everyone is really going to love the product. We got a great response when we let shops preview the product at the last CHA show, and the launch we have prepared for them for this show is going to be big, colorful, and whimsical of course.

I will be doing a Stay n Play in our booth (#3023) on Fantastiques and one of our July Ready-to-Go! Blank Board products - the mini shadow boxes. The project is kids party favors and they are super cute and easy enough for kids of all ages to make. I also designed a Stay n Play project on our Ready-to-Go! Blank Canvas book, which comes out in October. The project combines papercraft products and techniques with sewing and fabric related products and techniques and I am hoping it inspires papercrafters to get their iron out and sewers to explore using rub-ons in their creations. I'll post pics and project sheets right after the show!

I am going to SF this weekend to check out the Renegade Craft Fair - I am really excited to see what new, cool things the DIY and indie craft set have come up with lately.

That's all for now - gotta book it to work!

Papercraft project sheet up at ctpub.com

At the winter CHA show, C&T Publishing launched their Ready-to-Go! Blank Board Indie File Box and the packaging includes an image of the Seed Keeper project I designed. I also instructed a Stay 'n Play of the project in our booth to a very enthusiastic group of attendees. Now the project sheet is posted here at the C&T Publishing site and I'll have it posted here at my blog shortly.

Board books are really versatile and fun to craft with - the creativity is virtually limitless - so if you like the project, check out C&T Publishing's entire Ready-to-Go! Blank Board Book line.