Take a look, I'm in a book!

Check out this cool book I got in the mail the other day:


And guess what? I'm in it! Last year Kate Welsh contacted me because she had seen some of my recycled needlepoint purses. She proposed a collaboration where she would send me a needlepoint piece that she made and I would turn it into a bag. Always up for a challenge, I accepted, and look! Here it is:


Her design instantly reminded me of this vintage mod fabric I'd been holding on to for years just waiting for the right project. And now that project is immortalized! It's a laptop bag and the needlepoint piece is trimmed in fake fur. I love the sassy matching heels! Here's the how-to section:


They also featured my Owl Eyes Bag as an example of recycling vintage needlework. I first posted about that owl on this blog when I picked it up at a garage sale around this time last year. A lot can happen in a year. Look where it is now:


And, I've even got a "Designer Bio" in the back with the likes of crafty celebrities like Jenny Hart of Sublime Stitching:

A close-up:


Oh why did I submit that picture? And since when do I wear hats? Like, once or twice a year. Man, what a cheeseball smile. Oh well, I'm still excited to be a part of such a cool project. Thanks Kate!

Craigslist + MapQuest = Saturday morning fun!

I love Craigslist. It got us the house we lived in when we first moved here and a year later it got us the house we live in now. I found my teaching job posted on Craigslist and even a few kokoleo commissions have come my way via the message boards.

My favorite thing to do when I wake up on Saturday mornings is to check out Craigslist for garage sales in our area. Unlike back East, where garage and yard sales are a seasonal thing, people have them year round here. When I lived in West Virginia, yard saling was hit-or-miss. I'd find ads in the newspaper or simply drive around searching for signs. But here in L.A. (and in other big cities) we have Craigslist. When you combine it with MapQuest you can build yourself a Saturday afternoon excursion. Their new RouteBuilder feature rocks!

Behold, today's haul:


From yard sale #1 in Sherman Oaks, some fake mink material (2 yards), gold leather (2 yards), and vintage oversized buttons. Total: $10.00.

Yard sale #2 in Valley Village was my favorite. It turned out that the women holding the sale were indie entrepreneurs. One runs You're Such a Baby and the other runs the stationery company Rock Scissor Paper. This is why I love L.A., you never know who you're going to meet. They were having a blowout sale of all their overstock stuff, so I hit the jackpot. For $22 I got:

Some cute retro embellished onesies for the wee one in my belly, plus one for Sage and one for me.


20 blank onesies (soon to be embellished kokoleo-style).

And below, some cute stationery, notepads and buttons from Rock Scissor Paper. It turns out, we sell our wares at the same store - All' Aboard in Los Angeles. When I saw her stuff I immediately recognized it. Kokoleo customers may too - I've used some of her stationery as thank you cards. Future kokoleo customer can look forward to getting cards like these:


And for our little GIRL (I'm still giddy about this) , this decorative tile and a cool baby book:


And, to ease the shock of me bringing home more stuff, I got these Shag books and a stationery set for Erik:


He's not a fan of yard sales. He'd rather sleep past noon on the weekends. Consequently, he often wakes up to me and Sage showing off our latest haul and me bragging about my great bargains. I tell him it's a small price to pay to be able to sleep in peace.

Announcement

I have to take this moment to announce that come August, kokoleo may be stocking less sundresses, skirts, and other girlie things. Why? Because I'm going to have little girl of my own!

Monster Market

This past Monday I skipped work to take part in the very first Monster Market held at Sunnyside Preschool in Studio City. I know half the country is blanketed in snow right now, but around here it's getting downright hot in the afternoon. Still, it was so nice to be outside hanging out with other crafters all day. Here was my space.



and me in it:

I finally got to use my giant wall that I got at a yard sale this summer for 10 bucks. It's originally intended for use at trade shows and retails for a few thousand dollars new. Score! It only took a minute to put up and served as a very handy monster, purse, and pillow display. Check it:


There was music and dancing:



And shopping and (my personal favorite) trading. I traded a kokoleo embellished t-shirt for a monkey bead bracelet for Sage from Orit Harpaz Designs, and a kokoleo wristlet and ring for a stylin' belt for Sage from Eeny Meanie. The owner of Eeny Meanie, Denise Love, was also the organizer of the event. Great job, Denise! Here's her booth:


The next one is June 4th and since school will be finishing up around then, I don't know if I'll be able to participate. If you're in the area though, check it out!