Congratulations to Tina who writes, “i love this blog, and i don’t even have kids of my own! however, i do know and love several children of friends/family who will hopefully forever consider me the “cool aunt” this site helps me continue towards that goal. thanks!”
And congratulations to Susan who writes, “I love carnivals and State Fairs. I won a ribbon in the Texas state fair for one of my knitted monsters. I love your blog - I have been creating an archive of all the wonderful things you find. I especially love the crooked little houses lately. What a find!”
I also just want to say a warm ‘thank you’ for all of the kind comments. Spending so much of my day in front of the computer it can feel like I’m working in a vacuum at times - so the feedback and encouragement is very much appreciated!
I always appreciate it when bloggers pass along sites they enjoy or provide links to the new blogs on the block - a warm welcome to the world wide web.
Our pals over at GoodyBlog are especially good at this practice and actually brought the following two sites to my attention. GB is run by a team from Parents Magazine and do a great job of scouring the web for umm, well…goodies.
Nested is a particularly attractive site whose “coverage skews toward the three-and-under crowd and the parents who are trying to make their lives a happier and prettier place.”
I think TeensyGreen’s tagline “think outside your playroom” is brilliant and in our current climate of increasing eco consciousness this is a great resource site for caregivers who want to raise green kids.
Indie Babies covers subject matter near and dear to my heart - independently produced and often handcrafted gear for the short set.
Oh man, if you’re in the Los Angeles area this coming Sunday, July 15, from 11am-7pm head on over to the Felt Club: XL Summer event with 70+ crafters from SoCal and beyond (click here to check ‘em out!) who’ll show off their latest and greatest D.I.Y. wares for your handmade-shopping pleasure! You’ll enjoy fresh and delicious snacks and sweets from renowned Eagle Rock eatery Auntie Em’s Kitchen and a selection of all-natural sparkling fruit juices from IZZE (free while supplies last) - in addition to happy shopping music from our DJs, Dirty Robot and Lance Rock. The event will be hosted by lovable L.A. “histo-tainer” Charles Phoenix!
With your $1 donation at the door, you’ll receive a ticket to win a door prize, and the first 250 visitors will be treated to swag bags full of books, magazines, craft patterns, coupons, buttons, li’l gifts and samples from our sponsors and vendors (sneak peeks are viewable in our Flickr pool!). They’ve even published an event program full of D.I.Y. craft projects (limited to 2,000 copies)!
The event happens at the Ukrainian Cultural Center, 4315 Melrose Ave. (between Vermont and Heliotrope). The UCC is located near LACC, the 101, and the Red Line Metro. Right around the corner, you’ll also find a fabulous ice cream shop called SCOOPS. The owner agreed to stay open on Sunday (it’s usually closed!), so be sure to check it out and tell them Felt Club sent ya! There’s a ton of metered street parking (ranging from 2-6 hrs), plus unmetered spaces on side streets, or you can buy a $2 parking pass in the garage at the LACC lot on Vermont (btw Melrose and Monroe, right behind the swap meet…click here for a map.).
Last but not least, they’re offering a full roster of hands-on craft classes throughout the day. How cool is that!
Throughout the day, Felt Club is offering a selection of craft classes taught by various vendors. The classes are free, you only pay for materials. Space is limited and spots are first-come, first served. You must sign up at the Felt Club Info Table when you arrive and pick up your supplies.
Here’s the class list:
11:00 AM - PRINT GOCCO DEMONSTRATION - FREE
w/THE EDITORS OF CRAFT MAGAZINE
A hands-on demonstration of the Print Gocco, a Japanese tabletop silkscreening device. You’ll be able to make (then take!) a fun commemorative Felt Club print of your very own.
12:00 PM - HANDSPINNING YARN 101 - $20 for supplies
W/JAMIE CHAN OF MARYJANE’S ATTIC
Ever wonder how yarn is made? Yarn is simply a long, twisted continuous length of interlocked fibers, for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving and rope making. Yarn can be made from a variety of natural or synthetic fibers. Students will learn a brief history of yarn making, then learn how to spin yarn with some colorful wool and a drop spindle.
1:30 PM - NEEDLE FELTING 101 - $15 for supplies
W/JAMIE CHAN OF MARYJANE’S ATTIC
Ever wonder how wool felt is made? Felt is very easy to make given the right circumstances. Wool, which comes from sheep, is a very strong and stretchy fiber. When you use a needle to add pressure, wool shrinks and becomes felt. In this class you will be learn to make felted balls, beads, bracelets and flat objects. You will be given a variety of colorful wools and shown how to make these objects with just your hands and felting needles!
2:30 PM - CHARM JEWELRY 101 - $15 for supplies
W/LAURA STOKES OF CHARCOAL DESIGNS
Learn to use jump rings, metal or plastic chain, lobster clasps and more to make one-of-a-kind, super-colorful jewelry (bracelets, earrings, etc.) using kitschy-cute handmade resin charms.
3:30 PM - HANDSPINNING YARN 101 - $20 for supplies
W/JAMIE CHAN OF MARYJANE’S ATTIC
Ever wonder how yarn is made? Yarn is simply a long, twisted continuous length of interlocked fibers, for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving and rope making. Yarn can be made from a variety of natural or synthetic fibers. Students will learn a brief history of yarn making, then learn how to spin yarn with some colorful wool and a drop spindle.
5:00 PM - NEEDLE FELTING 101 - $15 for supplies
W/JAMIE CHAN OF MARYJANE’S ATTIC
Ever wonder how wool felt is made? Felt is very easy to make given the right circumstances. Wool, which comes from sheep, is a very strong and stretchy fiber. When you use a needle to add pressure, wool shrinks and becomes felt. In this class you will be learn to make felted balls, beads, bracelets and flat objects. You will be given a variety of colorful wools and shown how to make these objects with just your hands and felting needles!
Meet Gluey Gluerson (I didn’t name him, they didn’t ask me.) the officlal Felt Club mascot. He’ll be there on the 15th at the Felt Club table. Who is this intriguing character you ask? What makes him stick? Read his recent interview with the fine folks over at CRAFT Magazine/Blog.
The last Felt Club was held in December 2006 and featured on the Your LA news magzine show. Check out the following clip from the tv segment:
I want to invite you to skip on over to Rare Bird Finds where yours truly is today’s guest for their Fab Five Friday feature! Mei-Lynn and Sharla invest allot of time and energy into culling great products from the vast web of online retail and I appreciate their invitation to participate.
For those club members in the Los Angeles area I want to make you aware of an upcoming craft fair just for kids! The Little Monster Market will be taking place this coming Monday, June 4 at Sunnyside Preschool in Studio City. So parents drop your big kids of at school, grab your latte and bring the little ones with you - there will be special entertainment for the kidlets at 10:30am and 2:00 pm. And if for no other reason stop by just to say hello to yours truly who will have a mini Mahar Drygoods shop setup.
Fellow members, it’s with great pleasure that I announce the first Junior Society vote by secret ballot. Our little clubhouse of a blog has recently been nominated for the Blogger’s Choice Awards in the category of Best Blog Design! As Grand Poobah I beseech you to carefully weigh your options regarding this matter and I thank you in advance for your consideration when approaching the ballot box.
Kindly click on the image below to place your vote.
And so begins the first meeting of the International Chapter of the Junior Society. We’d like to take a moment to acknowledge member Arianne Foulks for her outstanding achievement in the construction of our new clubhouse and member S.britt whose brilliant illustrations now grace our walls. And to those of you that have traveled considerable distances to be here we greet you (in more than 325 languages)!
The aim of our frequent meetings will be to explore better than average children’s design as it applies to the following merit badge categories:
Arts and Crafts
Benevolence and Gratitude
Cleanliness
Culture
Domesticity
Education
Furnishings
Gastronomy
Great Outdoors
Horticulture
Literacy
Playthings
Traveling
and Wardrobe
A daunting task? We’ll simply tackle it badge by badge. We like the idea of working our way through the categories alphabetically from Arts & Crafts to Wardrobe and back again, but realistically know that great finds don’t always reveal themselves A - Z. We’ll undoubtedly add new categories as we go along and streamline our approach as experience directs. We welcome suggestions and constructive criticism and ask you to direct your correspondence to the GrandPoobah@JuniorSociety.com.
this site helps me continue towards that goal. thanks!”
