Lincoln Square Holiday Market Week 1

Last Saturday was the first day of the Holiday Market and it went well.  We had reasonable foot traffic either in spite of or because of the beautiful weather and home UI football game.  I had a few friends stop by, and a respectable amount of sales.  I think I have a good mix of items at prices that people seem happy to pay.  We'll see what happens in the coming weeks....


Here are a few pictures of the booth and some new cards that will be available this week:

This one says inside:  "It's your day - spoil yourself silly!"

It's hard to tell in this photo, but the pond and snow are super-glittery!

Still getting ready...

for the Holiday Market that starts this Saturday (see end of this post for details).  Today was a test run of the booth with my friend, Marlene, who makes bead jewelry.  I think we've got a good plan...check back later this weekend for pictures of our first day!

I seem to have finally kicked the mild H1N1 or whatever virus attacked my lower respiratory system and zapped my stamina.  Good thing, too, since I'm not only homeschooling Nicole and getting ready for this market but also this is the busiest week for Champaign PTA Council's part of the Reflections art contest that I'm co-chairing.

Here's some of the things I've added to my inventory in the last couple of weeks (double-click on an image to see it enlarged).

These 2 thank-you card designs are both being offered at the market and being used for the Champaign School Board members for "Illinois School Board Appreciation Day" on November 15.

And then more holiday cards...some are offered singly, some in sets of 8, some both ways.

Hope to see you C-U folks at the market one of these upcoming Saturdays!

More Halloween and Christmas

Here are a couple more Halloween cards I've made.  Nicole has had lots of fun playing with this set, too.

And another simple Christmas one:

I'm still working on building up inventory for the Urbana Indoor Holiday Market at Lincoln Square mid-November through mid-December.  Here's some of what I'm doing...

These are one-of-a-kind cards.

Happy Thanksgiving

Blank inside

Debating whether to put "Thanks for your hospitality" or "Welcome to the Neighborhood" in these two.

These are gift card holders - slide the band off, insert card in bottom, write a note on inside of the flap if you want, slide the band back on and write recipient's name on it - instant gift!

Feeling Very Appreciated In Chicago

I spent last weekend meeting some long-time friends for the very first time!  The Mothers & More Seasoned Moms email group has been chatting for years - some have been on there for 10 or more - and we finally decided to meet face-to-face.

So we decided to meet up in Chicago, and last weekend was the chosen time.  I had a great deal of fun organizing many of the things we did, and the lovely moms who attended were more than appreciative of my efforts.  In addition to a very generous gift certificate to use with Chrissy for Stampin' Up! products, and a wonderful send-up in a live rap on Saturday night complete with crown (look for a YouTube video posting soon), I arrived home from grocery shopping yesterday to find a beautiful flower arrangement waiting for me.  Thanks for brightening a very grey week, ladies!

While in Chicago I paid my first visit to "The Bean," a sculpture in Millenium Park that is actually titled "Cloud Gate" by Anish Kapoor.  It is totally captivating in its shape and reflectivity!  You can see by it's shape why it's called The Bean - it looks like a coffee bean!

I love the abstract effect one gets by just stepping inside the domed part:

People were very into lying down along the edge to get their reflection, so Maureen and I decided to try it out.

We have to say we didn't see the attraction.

Looking forward to our next Seasoned Moms' adventure, whenever and wherever that may be!

Crafting Update

I finally got time in the Project Room yesterday - did some organizing, photographing and crafting!  Here's some of my more recent items:


Some things I've done for Halloween inspired by this blog.

I'm getting ready to participate in Urbana Holiday Indoor Market from mid-November to mid-December.  Some things I'm producing in multi-packs:

Wreaths made from SU!'s Pocket Silhouettes and glitter glue in both traditional and Illini colors. (case'd from here)

I'm also making these in a variety of colors:

My mother-in-law passed along these plain, small notes (maybe 3.5" x 2.5") and envelopes that I've gussied up with SU!'s Upsy Daisy in Crushed Curry, Dusty Durango and Alway Artichoke.

 


I'm not sure how many people will be interested in Thanksgiving cards, so I've made about 10 of these to sell individually:

Chrissy showed this card layout at Stamp Club this month that I copied to make this New Year's version:

I liked how the little notes turned out so I made another card with the same stamped image:

I've also made a few of these more masculine thank-you cards:

And a few for those who know knitters.  I love being able to embellish with some of my mom's hand-dyed yarn!

Look for more projects when I have a chance to photograph them!