That Little Red Hat

I met a really sweet gal and fellow blogger named Tiffany Kirchner Dixon from The Fancy Farmgirl at the Second Saturdayz show I did last month.  We hit it off and started chatting, and I agreed to create a hat and fascinator for an upcoming glamor photo shoot she was doing (Tiffany is a fantastic photographer.)

I was feeling a vintage/patriotic vibe, so I decided on red wool felt for the hat.  I loosely copied the style of an Air Force flight cap, and made it a bit smaller to create a more playful look.

I added a sequin trim detail (I've never sewn sequins before!) and although I had it in mind to add a little bit of red veiling, I decided to leave it off.

The fascinator is made of boutique dyed red feathers and a metal button with rhinestone center (it reminded me of a uniform adornment.)  The piece is attached to a little alligator clip that sits on the side of the cap.  It can be taken off and worn alone, (or with the matching mini veil I decided to throw in the box.)  ;)

I'm really excited about this piece and kind of in love with the idea of wearing one of these myself one day, just for fun...

A new Vintage Classic veil

This veil is so yummy.  Vintage satin ribbon, vintage French rayon honeycomb veiling.  Handmade with love.  So delicate.  For sale here.  Need I say more?

Tacoma Is For Lovers Craft Fair Sneak Preview!

I am so excited writing this post!  I've gathered up quite a few new items and am now expanding the Deeds & Petunia line to include altered vintage clothing, upcycled accessories like belts, fabric hair clips and sashes, and JEWELRY!!!

I've enlisted the help of some fabulous artists to help bring my designs to life.  Parisienne Girl Designs has crafted some wonderful jewelry just for Deeds & Petunia.

A very talented gal from Gnome Made With Love whipped up these fabulous belts we've dubbed "Kenobe" belts (get it, because they're Obi belts, and everyone thinks of Obi Wan Kenobe?  From Star Wars???) and some cute little hair accessories.  These are more on the casual side, very affordable and great for everyday wear!

I am no expert crocheter, lord knows I try, so a friend whipped up these little bows for me.  Wouldn't they be cute pinned to a dress or your hair?

This week I've been working away on the sewing machine gussying up some vintage duds.  Just a little extra spice to bring them up to date and give them a little Deeds & Petunia flair!

So come see me this Sunday the 24th at the Tacoma Is For Lovers craft fair at King's Books in Tacoma, WA!  I'll be there from 11-4, and you can try on all the new goodies. 

No fighting over the red bird dress, ladies...

Real Wedding - Sara in a vintage style headband

Every once in a while I get a very special email from a bride who shares her photos with me.  It makes me cry every time!  The best part about my little veil and fascinator shop is knowing I get to make someone feel extra special on their wedding day with a handmade piece.

Sara chose this piece for her wedding day

Very elegant yet very simple.  Her look was customized with a vintage blue rhinestone brooch.  It was one that I painstakingly replaced some of the jewels in to bring it back to life!  Gotta love handmade... ;)

Here are a couple more shots of her looking gorgeous.  Thanks Fort Mill Photography for the use of your lovely photos.

Congrats Sara!  Thanks so much for sharing!

Wednesday Wonderful(ness)

Maybe I should permanently change this weekly feature to Wednesday Wonderfulness.  It has more of a ring to it.  Here is a round up of my favorite discoveries from the cream of the crop on Etsy!

Greater Than Gatsby Antique Silk Flapper Gown by VeraVague, $360

Jellyfish (Discomendusae 3) Vintage Book Page Art Print by DreameryStudio, $8.50

Doily Coasters by Uncommon, $20

Vintage Heliotrope 1920's necklace by JeanJeanVintage (a featured seller this week), $78

Ironstone Transferware Bowl Set by SomeOtherPrairie, $30

Vintage Lennon Sisters Paper Dolls by VintageAndSuch, $15

Mr. Darcy Proposal Mug by Brookish, Sold (I'm such a sucker for Darcy...)

Be sure to check out these shops - there is so much good stuff!  And don't forget to enter the giveaway from Holly Storm Designs!

Have a great night.  :)

Wednesday Wonderful

Broken camera, day 30...or so.  Who knows exactly.   I haven't been blogging as much because I can't take pictures of what I'm working on* (boo!)  But I've been too busy working on some new goodies to keep up with the blog lately anyway (yay!)

So I think today I'll just show you some other folks' amazing work!  Here are my latest favorites:

I LOVE THIS.  I want to be a fairy and romp around in a meadow and drink dew drops from buttercups wearing this adorable shrug by TianaCHE.  It's 100% handmade and she donates a percentage of her sales to a charity for children with Leukemia.  Gorgeous!

Strawberry Fields Bolero Shrug, (Hand Felted & Beaded!) by TianaCHE, $199

 This dress makes me swoon.  I want to swoon in the dress.  I want to be wooed and swoon in this dress.  Vintage lace makes me all tingly...

Tea Dress in Vintage Lace by SohoMode, $280

 My nearly 100 year old house is very drafty.  I have lots of warm sweaters, but none of them are as pretty as this.  I think I need this.

Made to Order Handmade Aqua Cable Mohair Shrug by reflectionsbyds, $90

Letterpress Paper House Kit - Chandler Lane by 1Canoe2, $24

I'm kind of obsessed with letterpress.  This neighborhood needs to be on my mantel.  

My mantel needs to become Chandler Lane.

I love this tiny little print.  It reminds me of my little yellow haired daughter.  Tiny prints are perfect because they are interesting and beautiful and generally don't cost you an arm and a leg.  A great way to get a little piece of art that fits just about anywhere.

Doll/Tiny Canvas Print by TushTush, $20

Right now I'm working on the new Deeds & Petunia bridal hair accessory line, so I've been thinking about weddings constantly.  More so than I have thought about in oh, say 13 years or so.  (Man, that makes me feel old to type that out...)

 I came across this little number when making a treasury and just died over how cute it was.  If I were to get married again, this would be the dress.  I love the touch of blue.  So adorable.

Blue Bird Vintage Inspired Gown by YourFairytaleWedding, $699

Etsy is so full of amazing, creative, talented artists.  I think back to my pre-Etsy days and they seem so much less inspiring.  Etsy peeps are incredible!!!

*So when I get the camera situation sorted out I'll start posting pics of the new bridal line.  Lots of soft pastels, big soft flowers, feather pieces, birdcage veils, little bridal hats, and a vintage country bride kind of vibe.  The big photo shoot for the new line is the last weekend in January, and with the help of some amazing artist friends, I'm optimistic everything will come together just right!  If all goes well, you'll see the new items in my Etsy shop in early February.

Need some craft ideas for Christmas?

Via Sadie Lou Who at Craftily Ever After, I just found a veritable "crafting smorgasbord" over at Inspire Co!  Go there straight away and take a look at the FREE (*shock* *disbelief* *gratitude*) Inspired Ideas Magazine.

An adorable Sadie Lou Who Vintage Inspired Doll similar to the project you'll find in Inspired Ideas!

Sadie Lou's Vintage Inspired Doll project is included (and completely adorable) along with tons of other unique and fun vintage-y projects and ideas.

Yay!  I'm so excited!!!  Who wants to do EVERY PROJECT IN HERE with me?!?!

Why I'm taking the handmade pledge

I'm taking the handmade pledge.  Well, my version of it anyway.  In 2011, I will only buy items new if they are handmade (preferably by a small business in the USA, just like my own), and everything else secondhand.  There will be times this is impossible - if I need to grab something last minute, not all of the materials I work with are handmade (let's see if we can change that in 2011!), and I realize that, but I will make a conscious effort to do my best.

My reasons would be the belief that recycling is important, American consumption has gotten out of control, and there is no accountability for the manufacturing processes overseas, causing an outrageous toll on our Environment and threatening our health.  I won't get on my soapbox today (sort of too late for that), but you might want to consider watching The Story of Stuff, which is short, highly entertaining and informative, and also visiting the Handmade Toy Alliance to see why small business owners are at risk due to the unrealistic standards of the CPSIA and mass manufacturing corporations who have found loop holes and been permitted exemptions to these outrageous testing standards (an independent testing groups recently found toxic toys are STILL on the shelves in Target and Wal-Mart stores despite the CPSIA and it's new legal limits on lead levels.)

The bottom line for me is that I don't trust these faceless corporations anymore.  Their bottom line is money.  I am responsible for the health and well being of my family, and I believe we have lost touch with what's really important in life - each other.  So I'm going to support my community of small business owners, the people of Tacoma in particular.  I'm going to cut back on the amount of future landfill crap that comes through my door.  I'm going to look for items that we need instead of want, and if I do find something I want, it will have a story, a history, and even a little bit of meaning.

And I'm happy that I'll have more excuses to go to thrift stores and antiques shops!

The other thing I would like to share with you, my dearest reader, is that you should check out Etsy.  Etsy is a site dedicated to sellers of handmade items, supplies for crafters and makers of hand made items, and all things vintage.  It's full of beautiful pictures, stories and descriptions about the items you're purchasing, and there is something for everybody on the site.  There are many many beautiful and well-crafted items.  Here are a few shops I've purchased gorgeous items from and that I have received gifts purchased from these shop (thank goodness my husband is an Etsy convert!) in the past:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/beehivekitchenware?ref=seller_info - Heart Measuring Spoons
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ZayneeDesigns - Custom Scarflette (love!)
http://www.etsy.com/shop/yardia - A lovely card sent to a friend
http://www.etsy.com/shop/mamaroots - Custom Give, Save, Spend tags for my girls

I've been hearing a lot of people lately express their fear of using Etsy.  They may have been overwhelmed by choice in the past, or have not had luck with finding exactly what they want.  I'll share in my next post why you should give it another shot and I'll walk you through doing a successful search, requesting custom items (the best way to get exactly what you want!), and all the wonderful hidden gems Etsy has to offer that you never even knew about!

Handmade Toy Alliance and Etsy

In honor of the Handmade Toy Alliance's Blog Week, I've created an Etsy Treasury featuring HTA members who are also fellow Etsy sellers.  There are some very sweet toys and handmade goods for children, only a few of which I've featured here.

Handmade Toy Alliance Treasury on Etsy

I think my top three favorites are:

The Giving Saving and Spending Tags by MamaRoots.  My kids are just starting to earn allowance and we feel like it's so important to instill in them money management skills at a young age!  Especially the "Giving" part.  :)


Primitive Tetris!  What a great idea!  Remember how addictive Tetris was when you were a kid (ahem, I guess I still am since it's on my IPhone...)?  This fabric game can go along with you to a day at the beach or the park and you don't have to worry about it getting ruined if it gets dirty, sandy or wet.  A great quiet game or something to play solo.  This item is made by Blynken and Nod.  I love her Etsy Bio:

"I do not:
Run the local PTA
Sing on tune
Run a mile in less than 10
Play the banjo
Stick to an organic diet
Always make dinner
Compost
Reread the classics at every opportunity

I do:
Bake when I'm stressed
Reuse what I can
Inhale audiobooks while I work
Brainstorm when I should be sleeping
Teach my girls not to litter
Love farmer's markets
Intend to read the PTA newsletters
Enjoy listening to people who can sing on tune
Dance shamelessly when nobody's looking
Love my husband and children and...
LoveLoveLove a good creative project "

Amen, sister!

The Stuffed Animal Horse by Woolies.  Since my children are obsessed with horses, I have gained a new appreciation for all things Equine.  The horse is stuffed with soft wool and knit with 100% wool yarn, so I'm automatically in love.  The description states "Spring is brave and strong, and runs free with her band of wild horses."  Spring sounds awesome.

Take a look around at these online shops, and don't forget to leave a comment on the Treasury!  The more clicks and comments this Treasury gets, the more likely Etsy is to feature these HTA members on their front page.

And remember, when you need a gift for someone small, check out all the great Handmade Toy Alliance members on Etsy!

Cherished Toys

I'm thinking about my childhood tonight.  I remember some of my toys very distinctly - I had My Little Pony horses that were scented.  I had a Barbie that winked and brushed her hair back out of her eyes with her hands.  Of course, I remember the Super Nintendo and Atari!

But the things I will always cherish are the heirloom toys given to me by my grandmothers, aunts and family friends.  These are the toys, clothes, blankets, books that were made with love and great care.  There were no natural toy stores or stores that specialized in European import toys when I was a kid.  Etsy, which features handmade goods and loads of amazing handcrafted toys, certainly didn't exist.  The heirloom toys that were given to me were made to last and were made with skilled hands of crafty women who had my health and safety in mind as much as my enjoyment when making these items.  Some of these items had an incredible attention to detail.  I had a soft book for quiet time that was appliqued and featured activities like a fabric clock, a snap on apple orchard (you would pick and count the apples, and sort by color),  a little button vest and shoe tying.  I remember playing with that quiet book more than any other toy we had.  There were cat pillows with mother and baby cats that were patchworked and had embroidered whiskers.  I believe my grandma purchased them from a local crafter in her town.  I love those pillows and still have them.  My mom hung onto to most of these items, if they weren't totally worn from use.

When I grew up and had kids, I looked around the room one day and realized that nearly every toy we owned was made of cheap plastic, and kept breaking.  Since I didn't have anyone gift me any handmade toys (but we did receive some really lovely blankets!) I started looking online for heirloom quality toys that my kids could cherish.  For Christmas one year I bought toys online from shops like A Toy Garden, which features high quality and mostly natural and handmade toys, hoping to find that while these toys were higher priced, they were made to last as well as please my children.  I was completely blown away by the quality and craftsmanship of these toys.  By the next year I had become mildly obsessed with handmade toys.  The kids loved them.  They were different from everything else and treated with extra care (well, most of the time.)  Five years later my daughters still play with many of these toys and they haven't worn down or broken.

Now there is a great resource for all of us parents who do not want our children to play with toxic toys that break easily, but instead want to give our children quality toys produced by people with loving hands and sold by business owners with a conscience.  The Handmade Toy Alliance has a wonderful list of members who manufacture children's items, handcraft toys, and make these toys available for sale to people like you and me!

But the Handmade Toy Alliance also exists for a bigger purpose.  These toys are at risk of becoming unavailable to us for sale.  Here is some info on the history and mission of the HTA from their Website:

In 2007, large toy manufacturers who outsource their production to China and other developing countries violated the public's trust. They were selling toys with dangerously high lead content, toys with unsafe small parts, toys with improperly secured and easily swallowed small magnets, and toys made from chemicals that made kids sick. Almost every problem toy in 2007 was made in China.

The United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the US. So, they passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) in August, 2008. Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in toys, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys and requires toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number. All of these changes will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with. Large manufacturers who make thousands of units of each toy have very little incremental cost to pay for testing and updating their molds to include batch labels.

For small American, Canadian, and European toy makers, however, the costs of mandatory testing, to the tune of up to $4,000 per toy, will likely drive them out of business. And the handful of larger toy makers who still employ workers in the United States face increased costs to comply with the CPSIA, even though American-made toys had nothing to do with the toy safety problems of 2007. Toy makers won't be the only ones impacted by the CPSIA, the thousands of US businesses who offer clothing, jewelry and other gifts for children --in essence-- the entire children's industry will be as well.

The authors of the CPSIA simply forgot to exclude the class of toys that have earned and kept the public's trust. The result, unless the law is modified, is that handmade and small batch children's products will no longer be legal in the US. The Handmade Toy Alliance represents these toy makers, manufacturers, importers and retailers. We actively lobby the House of Representatives and the Senate for CPSIA reform and also serve as a collective voice to the CPSC. Thriving small businesses are crucial to the financial health of our nation. Let's amend the CPSIA so that all businesses large and small are able to comply and survive!

Please support these businesses and visit the Handmade Toy Alliance's Website this week to learn more.

Archives - Struggling Tonight 05/27/2010

Originally Posted 05/27/2010

Today I spent most of the day researching the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) guidelines that are set to go into effect in about 250 days. These guidelines are supposed to prevent corporate manufacturers of toys and products for kids from unethical practices (making lead-filled, pthalate-soaked toys and products.) In 2007 when there were mass recalls on toys, all of them were manufactured in China where there is almost no regulation or accountability on what is produced and how it's produced for that matter. The CPSIA exists to "establish consumer product safety standards and other safety requirements for children’s products and to reauthorize and modernize the Consumer Product Safety Commission. " Basically, they're calling for testing of all products for toxins like lead and pthalates, tracking labels on all items to trace to the manufactured batch if there is a problem, certification that you comply to the rules. It's supposed to force these dirty, unconscionable corporations to abide by regular human standards, because most of us don't want toxic toys or clothes.

I'm not convinced. It won't run them out of business, and it will barely affect their business practices. Big corporations can survive this. In fact, they will THRIVE because of this. Now that they know the rules, they can figure out how to get around them and still make a buck. Meanwhile, everything is mass produced, cheaply made, disposable. Everything is outsourced. American made products are too expensive and they know it. We Americans want to consume and we want to consume now. We want what we want to be available and affordable. When it breaks or we get bored, we just throw it out and get a new one. That's the American way, right?

Unfortunately for me and many other small business owners who manufacture handmade goods that could be marketed or sold to children, who choose eco-conscious, non-toxic and/or recycled materials, who hold THEMSELVES accountable and actually care about what materials they use and whether or not it could potentially do harm, it appears there was no thought as to how we might survive. We don't want to use toxic materials. We want our products to be safe for kids! But we are called to test our items as well. Okay fine. Even if we bought items that were already tested and certified by the manufacturer of our supplies, meet the standards, etc? Yup, we're evidently expected to re-test, put tracking labels in our items, etc. all over again. It's not cheap to test. Definitely not cheap to test EVERY item. It would be impossible as a home-based business to stay in business and conform to all these expectations. We'll be run out of business. I'll be run out of business before I even really begin. Chalk another one up for the corporations.

I'm mad. I'm discouraged. I don't like the fact that there is no support for the little guy anymore. I don't want cheap, crappy products anymore. I want to know that the people who make what I buy, care about their products and care about my safety. I want what I buy to be of good quality and to last. I make products of good quality that are meant to last, and they won't cost an arm and a leg. Yeah, they might be a little more expensive than what you might find at a corporate chain store, but I stand by what I make, guarantee it will be unique and it will withstand the extra washings you'll need to do (since you only bought one skirt instead of two.) I hope I'll be around long enough to sell to you someday.

If you give a damn, visit the Handmade Toy Alliance website, write your Congressman and State Representative, know what you stand to lose: quality, unique, handmade goods. Made with care and pride, made to last and made to love. Made to support families who need the income. Maybe even made in your neighborhood.