It's Almost Here!

Well, okay it's still 2 months away, but The Bazaar Bizarre in Clevelend is approaching fast!  Yours truly is working hard on stock and new designs to bring to the Bazaar Bizarre West for the December 12-13th show.  They have also added a second show in East Cleveland - so check out the dates and mark your calendars - see you there!

oh, and if you are a fellow facebook junkie - you can view the invite and more....

Have You Heard of the Lunch Bunch?

I love facebook - I use it for my business but also to stay in touch with friends. I love discovering new shops as well as new artists and recently found Ana Bagayan. Her art has quickly become one of my favorites.

Ana is also one of the duo who make up the Lunch Bunch
- they pack and deliver lunch once a week to the homeless in Los Angeles, California. And, when there are funds left over, the Lunch Bunch reinvests it in the form of clothing and other supplies that the homeless community can use. I was more than impressed and decided to donate what I could for their lunches that week and future weeks.

I love to keep up with their blog and read about their progress - I hope you will too - its a great way to stay in touch with new friends!

I'm Baaaaack!

Well its been another long break since my last post and I am still dealing with the parental units and their health issues but things are getting better - day by day - hopefully things are settling down and I can focus on these upcoming shows:

I will be at The Reston Market every Saturday through October 31st form 8AM - 2PM so come on out for a great day at Lake Anne - there is a farmer's market adjacent to the craft market so it makes for a fun day!

My big holiday show this year is The Cleveland Bazaar Bizarre - December 12 & 13th so I am looking froward to that road trip as its partially the only thing even close to a vacation for me this year - so we are hitting the Rock-n-Roll museum as well on this trip - woohoo!

I am working on some new designs and can't wait to share them with everyone!

Road Trip!

The Pittsburgh Craft Collective is having a show at The Union Project over Labor Day weekend - Crafts-N'At - stop by and shop!

My Favorite Iced Coffee - A Tutorial!

Well, it is finally warm and not raining, so what could be better than enjoying my favorite Vietnamese Iced Coffee! I had always ordered this yummy treat when out a local Vietnamese restaurants, and then, I discovered I could make it at home!

It is very simple, just gather the following ingredients and wares:
Cafe Du Monde ground coffee (it's the one in that bright mustard-color can) - you can use other coffee but I have found this is the most popular used by restaurants here in the area)
Condensed milk - I favor the 'black & white' brand from my local Thai grocery - but you can choose your fav!
Metal individual drip coffee maker - these can be found in restaurant supply stores and are easy to find in the Asian grocery stores here

Okay, so now we have everything! Grab a tall glass (check to make sure your metal coffee maker fits on top) and add about 1/4-1/2" of the condensed milk to the bottom (I prefer less as I do not like my coffee really sweet - but add it to your taste as you test out a few coffees yourself!)

Place the metal drip cup on top of the glass (leave the filter insert out) and spoon in 2 heaping teaspoons of coffee.

Add the filter on top (do not press down to compact) and add your hot water - I have a Japanese hot pot that keeps water at a high temperature all the time - I love it - great when you need water for tea, oatmeal, etc and you never have to deal with boiling it.(My cat Dahlia loves the hotpot too - she thinks it is her new hot date!)

I add enough water to the top of the rim, and then a bit more for some extra yummy coffee - once the water flows through the coffee grounds into you glass , carefully remove the metal drip container (it will be hot from the hot water - doh!).

Now, before you do anything else grab a spoon to mix the milk (which is layered on the bottom) and the coffee - stir and swirl til you get all the condensed milk mixed in,

Grab some ice (I like to buy the big bags of ice from the grocery since I go through so much ice during summer making these)and fill your glass, add a fun straw, and you have a yummy, Vietnamese Iced Coffee to enjoy!

Feel free to add any variations you enjoy in my comments section - this is the recipe that works for my taste and I would love to hear others!

It has been a while since my last post - I got a phone call a few Saturdays ago that my mother was taken to the hospital - she is back home now and recovering, however the weekly trips are taking a toll on my creativity. I want to thank everyone on facebook for their support during these times! I was able to make some new earrings for my bejeweled collection - Enjoy!

Day 5 Da Vinci Mode Challenge

Well, we are going strong with our 365 day challenge and have made it to DAY 5!

Da Vinci Mode 365 Challenge

I am starting a new challenge with a group of friends I met on facebook - we just finished our 30 day challenge to create something every day and post about it - whether its a studio organization, a new project idea you started, or actual items you made - its all about having fun and creating every day. The first group started out as a 30 day challenge and some of us wanted to keep going - so we did!

Our group can be found on facebook and is described below:

"We are a fierce group of individuals seeking to live more creatively on a daily basis using Leonardo Da Vinci as our role model. We vow to hold each other accountable, to inspire and to push ourselves in new creative directions."

See you there!

Spring is Finally Here!

This past month in northern Virginia we have had some pretty crappy weather days - but what a wonderful few days/weekend we are having! My plants are thriving and my cat Dahlia loves sunning herself on the window sill! As the weather gets nice, I am starting to make some things for myself in between sewing for markets - I am hoping to make at least one new thing for myself per week so check back for pics!

The Reston Market - Coming Soon!

Hi all - just a reminder that market at Lake Anne in Reston, VA will be starting the first weekend in May! The adjacent farmer's market will begin the 2nd week so come on out for a beautiful day of great vendors - hope to see you there!

And for those of you who are not in the northern Virginia area, there is a great site to locate farmer's markets close to where you live - Local Harvest - they have info on local CSA as well - check it out!