Daydreaming and... Coming soon to caustic threads...

So, I have been doing more sewing and designing the past few weeks and as much as I REALLY LOVE screen printing, it is very revitalizing for me, as designing has been a long time passion. Soooo I have been daydreaming about making some investments that I think would really help me make more of a business out of my designing.

I want to buy two adjustable dress forms in addition to the designers dress form that I already have. I CAN grade (or size) Patterns, but I do not trust this method fully and would like to have SOMETHING to fit my clothing on. Since my business is an Internet business I usually don't get to fit the item directly on the customer (which is ALWAYS Preferred). So I think an adjustable dress form is the next best thing. I need two because they come in sizes sm/m and m/l.

The other thing I want is to either get my industrial overlock machine going OR try to resell it and buy a household one. I am hoping to find all of these things used, but I have a few ideas for coming up with funds if I cant.


I finally got back to this dress, it has been sitting in muslin, really just waiting to get ruined, so I finally made the pattern for it. This is what it looked like in muslin : http://acrylicandsteel.blogspot.com/2010/03/from-workbench.html

I was able to cut and sew most of the pattern this weekend, and I think it is SOOO cute. The problem is that I don't know if I can get this fabric again, so it may be one of a kind.

It has some really interesting details at the top that I just love...


And this Too Cute print in the pocket for a little interest. It helps that I love this shade of green I am sure, and I just swoon over Japanese prints. There are several variations of this dress that I have swirling around my brain, so I hope to get a chance to sketch them out and make the patter pieces soon. On this one I just need to do a little finishing on the inside on the neck and then install the zipper and do the hem for the outer skirt. It is fully lined.

I also want to offer this dress in several basic colors and fabric choices that I know I can always find, and do a version where the halter part of the dress is in a sheer fabric.



I burned two new screens this morning, this is a sample of one of them, of course the real thing will not say caustic threads across it :) the other one is a fox. I am trying to think up some cleaver text to print along with the fox but I haven't come up with anything yet. I am going to print this screen tonight to see how it turned out! I cant wait!


I also made two shirts like this. I whipped one up for autumn pretty quickly and had just enough fabric to make one to sell, so I decided to make another.



and... a bonus picture of Adam and autumn for family, fans of Autumn (fans of Adam???) and anyone else who likes cute kiddo's.

I'll be back late tonight to do my treasury of the day!

Take care!

Xoxo

Erica

I've Lost 12 Lbs!

Since I had my gall bladder removed I have lost 12 pounds. I have no Idea what my gall bladder has to do with my metabolism. I have been working very hard to lose the 60lbs left of the 100 lbs I gained during my pregnancy for over a year and have had no real luck, so while 12 lbs is still 48lbs shy of my goal I am very happy to be making SOME progress since before this I had not lost or gained a single pound since my 6 week post-partum check-up. before the surgery I couldn't really eat for about 10 days, but the weight loss did not occur until a few weeks later. I can't see any lifestyle changes that would have caused the loss, I have been eating more calories than before the surgery, and I could not exercise for a little while after the surgery either. Now I am back to my regular activities, but I am so shocked and excited to have seen the scale steadily fall each time I go visit the Doctor.


It is also very confusing to me, since I didn't even lose A POUND when I was trying so hard to. Two other small changes occurred. I stopped drinking. I used to drink a glass of wine a night. I have been enjoying blue sky cherry vanilla creme soda more often, and that has way more calories than a glass of wine. I also do not eat anything with Corn Glucose (high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup etc). That actually added calories to my diet as well. I didn't eat much that had corn syrup, but I was surprised what did have it. The problem with corn syrup is that it is even worse for you than sugar, especially if you are very active and need your calories to work for you. Sugar at least turns to energy before your body stores the unused calories. Corn syrup goes directly into fat storage. The reason so many products have corn syrup is because it is much cheaper than real sugar. So, as a result of my new aversion to corn syrup I no longer eat Special-K (or the store brand equivalent) and have switched to Kashi or "Mom's Best" shredded wheat. We only get the kashi if it is on sale. I also switched from yo plait light yogurt to the smiths brand yogurt. It has way more calories, but it tastes so much better and it is healthier because it doesn't have corn syrup or aspartame in it. I have also let myself eat pizza twice in the past month (it had been about 8 mo since I last had eaten pizza) and made my delicious but fatty green chili chicken enchiladas last week, and have been enjoying the shortbread cookies adam got me for valentines day.

Anyway... don't look a gift horse in the mouth I guess, I am happy for any progress, even if I can't explain it! Maybe whatever was wrong with my body has finally worked itself out!

YAY!

Here is a cute picture of Autumn after eating a chocolate sucker that I got her from See's Candy when I got candy for Adam For Valentines day:

It looks a little like she killed something and ate it's bloody carcas or had a massive bloody nose, but that is really just chocolate.
Xoxo
Erica

Snippets of Life

This is an exchange my husband and I had this weekend, it is a little corny, but funny.

Erica: (to Adam and Autumn) I sure love my family! Autumn you are the sweetest baby(Autumn nods yes) and Adam, you are the most wonderful husband! I wouldn't trade you guys for the whole world!

Adam: well you know you can have the world too...

Erica: (makes inquisitive look)

Adam: The world is your oyster. (points finger to sky)

Erica: (groan) ha ha... too bad I don't like oysters.

Adam: yeah, me either.

Erica: So can the world be my bacon instead???....


Also, I made a Treasury last night of recycled and upcycled etsy finds! Check it out here while it lasts:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=72349

And I did make a Tutu this weekend as planned. It was fun and easy and I intent to post a TUtuTorial (snicker) some time this week.

Long Weekend

This weekend was WFTDA western regionals and it was a painfully long weekend. Duke city derby's Munecas Muertas went in to the tournament 6th and left 6th.

It was really difficult to be away from Autumn and Adam, and I was very emotional. I was disappointed that even though I go to almost every practice I had not improved more. It is really annoying when you work harder than you have ever worked and are not seeing the improvement you expect, and then to top it off you are overly emotional. It is all related to some kind of health issue that should be a hormonal imbalance and I THINK is hypothyroid. I am suffering from a meriad of symptoms including extreme difficulty concentrating, fatigue, moodiness and irritability as well as being much too sensitive, and that is only a few. The thing that is really hard for me is that I feel like no one believes me. Maybe because before I experienced it I would not have believed someone that said they were working hard and not seeing any fruits of thier labor. I have been waiting about three months for an appointment because we had to wait for our new insurance to kick in and then we had to wait almost 2 months for an appointment.

I am glad to be home.

Sorry for the downer, here are some cute baby pictures to make up for it :)
This is why Grandpa Howard (my dad) calls Autumn "The Tornado"

Yes, that actually is a mini burrito that Autumn is eating :)

My cute baby!

Baby Autumn is ADORABLE

I have not put up any baby pics in a while so I thought I would share :)

Isn't she just adorable?

Thoughts.

I have a lot to do for etsy. I have a lot that I want to do in general, and here I am , not doing it . Sitting on my butt in front of my computer not doing any of it, except of course, writing a blog. That was on my list of things to do.

I am not sure if I am lazy or depressed. I can’t usually tell the difference, I must admit. Maybe not REALLY depressed, just glum. I know now that I am one of those people that just NEEDS sunshine. If I had not moved here I never would have known. The sun came out briefly today, but now it is gray and cold again.

Adam left town today. He is working somewhere doing something for some biz. He is a wildlife biologist and during the spring that usually means MIA. Admittedly I feel lucky this year. So far this is his first trip out of town. It is going to cause problems for my Derby schedule, but I am abstaining from the draft so it is not that big of a deal if my attendance suffers. The only real problem with that is that I love skating, it makes me happy.

Ahhh, and derby. I miss PLAYING roller derby, but am SO thankful to be involved at the level that I am. So why am I abstaining from the draft? Well, at this time, it looks like moving away from Portland is becoming more and more likely. The draft is intense and there are lots of girls that deserve to be drafted. If I decided to participate and happened to be one of the lucky few who got drafted, I would feel much guiltier about moving. I don’t want a team to waste their time with me, and then move away. I also don’t want to take a highly coveted draft slot from anyone else who will be here for a long time. I am not going to drop off the fresh meat team because I love getting to skate as much as I do and on the chance that we decide not to move I don’t want to lose the postpartum derby progress that I have made. Besides, if we stick around I don’t want to lose my slot on the fresh meat team.

SO, Tonight is fresh meat tryouts. I am thinking about going to watch. I want to, but it seems silly to drive out there just to watch, plus, they may not appreciate having Autumn on the sidelines. I also have all these things I want to do, but that is not an excuse because so far today I have not done them. Either way I will be rooting for Frisky Sour, Knotty La Rue, and hot mamma Stormy Monday.

Oh, and my new derby name is Sultry Confinement, Thanks to permission from Sally Terry Confinement in Colorado.

What else? I am excited to be doing a custom order on etsy. I will be making a dress. I need to get some exercise today. I am sick so I skipped Sunday practice, that and it was Easter. That means it has been two days since I have done anything seriously active and my body can feel it. I also started playing with youtube. I wish I knew how to edit video, but I have put up a few awesome baby Autumn videos.

I could go on, but I know that most people have probably already lost interest, and I should have really broken this into multiple entries. Cheers to everyone who made it to the end of this blog! You are surly less ADD than I am.

First Post...

So, the first post, I suppose, is an excellent opportunity to tell you a little bit about ourselves. When Broken down to the simplest of terms "We" are a family. My husband and I make cool things, and we sell them on esty. I just had a baby girl in November. Her name is Autumn and she is growing fast! She is only 4 months old and she already weighs 18 lbs 6 oz!

My Husband Adam is a wildlife biologist. He also makes beautiful jewelry and hand forges knives. I have an AA in Fashion design from FIDM in Los Angeles, but am now an artist and stay at home mom. I paint, sew, needle felt... and lots of other miscellaneous crafts. I also play Roller Derby. I started playing in November of 2005 for Duke City Derby. I love talking derby... so I will save that for another post.

Adam and I recently moved from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Portland, Or- and it has been a little bit of a culture shock for both of us. I grew up in Albuquerque, and while I spent a little time in Los Angeles, Ca and in Savannah, Ga I cant help missing the wide open spaces and vivid sunsets of the desert southwest.