Indie Fixx Shop

The last vendor I want to mention from my recent explorations at the Pile of Craft fair a couple of weeks ago is the Indie Fixx Shop. I could have spent hours looking at their booth, and I have spent a significant amount of time on their online shop. The founder of the shop sells other independent artists and crafters' goods. So there is plenty to look at! Jewelry, art prints, household items (I LOVE the block print kitchen towels) and bath items. Here are a few of my faves!

Polka-Dot Owl

Letterpress Coasters

Orange Retro Ring

Upcycled Plastic Bangle

Butterfly Block Print Towel

Tiger Lilly Shop

At Baltimore's Pile of Craft, I probably spent the most time talking to the artist behind Tiger Lilly. She is really excited about her work and enjoys scavenging for different products that she can turn into jewelry. She will also be featured in July's issue of Baltimore Magazine and has received some local awards for her work. I was most drawn to her bright little button rings. Most of them are made from damaged kimono fabric.


Her button bracelets are cute, too. And if I wore earrings, I certainly would have picked up a pair of these copper beauties!

Woodkins Dolls

Ever since my son was very young (and before I knew I would have a daughter) I have loved these Woodkins Dress Up Dolls. My daughter is just a little over 2, so she's still a bit young for these, but I'm thinking of getting a set when we travel during the winter holidays. It seems like something that might keep her busy on the plane for a cross-country flight.

T-Shirt Fun

There were two silk-screened apparel booths that really stood out at Pile of Craft last week.


Red Prairie Press has beautiful dresses, T-shirts, scarves and onesies. And all their items were sooooo soft!I really like Spaghetti Kiss, too (although I don't have any pics). I have been eyeing the Robot Blues tee, because it makes me think of my son. Everything of their's was nice and soft, also!

the littlest bean

Love this shop of cute little things. I love the little barrettes and also the color study necklaces. They are all gorgeous in person, too! I remember the days I used to stick pencils or chopsticks in my hair to get it up. These hair sticks would have been awesome.

Buncombe Buckles

Love these buckles from Buncombe Buckles Metalworks. In person they truly are amazing, and you can't help looking at the detail of each piece. Each buckle is handcrafted from metal found at scrapyards, thrift or antique stores. (Now if only I had a nice skinny little waist where one could be displayed!)

Broken Plates

I am pretty impressed by what this artist does with broken china! Check out The Broken Plate Pendant Company on etsy.

JennyJen 42

After visiting Baltimore's Pile of Craft festival last week, I want to share some of my favorites I saw that day. I spent the most time at JennyJen 42's booth. She has the cutest little bags and aprons. Almost everything has a bird on it, too. You are in luck, because she does have her own etsy shop.

Unfortunately one of my favorite items of hers, her sun hats are not in her etsy shop. My friend bought one, so I'll see if I can get a picture from her to put up here. Hmmm...

db clay

Father's Day brought a little one of these goodies to my husband. DB Clay is a Portland based team that makes wallets from their own art, or other designs that they love. Each wallet design has an interesting story. I purchased "Orange Hallway" a couple of months ago with a nice discount (not sure it still works, but I used kyle50 for a 50% discount... I've also seen dmom30x for a 30% discount).

These wallets are made of tope, a synthetic PVC free material you can read about here. And you should really read the design stories with each wallet. I especially liked Adult Chores, Childhood Chores, and Cat Carpet. It just shows that inspiration can be found anywhere!

Kitchen-Office Organization

Remember this post from last September about my kitchen desk? I finally got my storage stuff together for my kitchen. In late August (after we get our 1/2 bath done), I'll be giving a house tour on my family blog, but here are some pictures from our kitchen desk/organization area.

The desk


These beautiful binders from Target's greenroom eco line.

This file box is from Ikea. I really wanted something smaller, but if I wanted it to hold our junk I needed to get a standard-sized file box. (Pardon the dust... and did the phone grow legs and walk off?) A side note... I also use these boxes (in green) to hold my unmentionables on the closet shelves of our dresser-less bedroom.

Holding My Breath

Ever since Ork announced they had new city posters planned for the spring, I have been visiting their site regularly to see which city would be the TBA city. This morning I found out it will be Washington DC. Can't wait! Of course I have close, close ties to both Portland and San Francisco (let alone the 12 years I spent in the Los Angeles area), but I think the DC one is the one I will purchase! (Here is the SF design... with all the lovely copyright markings!)

It is April

I can't believe we are half way through April already. I haven't been posting like I'd like to. Oh well! Next week (on Tuesday) is Earth Day. In honor of Earth Day, I hope to add some posts about a few green things. (Don't you love how the word "green" now has a whole other meaning? Language is an amazing thing!)

20x200

WORD STUDY by Mickey Smith

This new art "project" has been getting quite a bit of buzz, and I have been following the art for sale since it's first week in September. The goal of 20x200 is to make great art affordable for everyone. Every Tuesday and Wednesday new pieces are posted in limited editions. The art goes for either $20, $200 or $2000 depending on size and copies available. Some of the photography has been amazing! A lot of the drawings are very popular, too.

Radar, by Aili Schmeltz



Running Track by James Deavin

Baby Legs

I can't help but write about these amazing things that are helping me (and my daughter) survive the cold winter. I love, love, love Baby Legs!


First of all, aren't they just so cute? I always feel so bad when I have to take off all of my baby's layers to change her diaper. With these footless/waistless "legs", she can still stay warm while I take care of her. Wind chill is an evil thing that can rip through almost any clothes, so the warmth of these little legwarmers are great for my girl when we are outside. And did I mention how cute they are?

Gorgeous Calendar

I saw these beautiful Jennifer Hill calendars featured on both design*sponge and dooce. Absolutely amazing. How great it would look in an office (if I had one) or in my kitchen. I love the concept and the title Places I Have Never Been. Of course Jennifer Hill has lots of other cool stuff too, so make sure you check her out!

How Retro!

This Etsy shop sells jewelry and accessories made from vintage buttons. The designs are a lot of fun and whimsical. Makes me want to run my hand through a button jar!

not too pink... just right

I can’t remember how I found this Etsy shop filled with little prints for your home. The art is whimsical and the colors are great. Shopping at not too pink is a very affordable and fun way to add some style to your walls.




Aren't they fun?

pinkdixie

I've been lacking some inspiration lately. To help with my desire to find pretty (sometimes cute or fun) things, I decided to have an Etsy week. I love, love, love the philosophy behind Etsy. As their motto says, "Your place to buy and sell all things handmade." It ends up that many of the "shops" are run by mothers who have a talent for creating beautiful things!

I was quickly perusing Etsy, while waiting for the water to boil (our computer is in the kitchen), when I stumbled upon pinkdixie (really fun clothes for really fun kids). What actually drew me to the shop was this cute little smock with pears and apples all over it.


I love that the design of the dress, along with many of the fabrics the seamstress uses, is something that I could have worn when I was little (yes, a child of the 70's). She began making these smocks for her daughter to wear during meals once her daughter was pulling off the bib. It could also be used for messy activities, or even as is on a hot day!

Pinkdixie also has little baby outfits, bib sets, car seat strap covers, and lounge wear. Look at this cute lounge outfit!