happy thanksgiving all :o)

Jared arrived in Frankfurt yesterday and made his way to Aachen...today he went racing at an indoor kart race center. After some jet lagged sleep he'll have to start getting down to work...I recommend lots of coffee, and a supply of salty pretzels!

Hello there! I've been absent the last few days, but with sorta decent reasons. I've been working on felted scarf orders, helping Jared get ready to leave for Germany for work (he left yesterday), getting Jared's mom set up in my studio/guest house (she arrived Friday), and a myriad of other callings including just being mama to Miranda :o)

And it goes on, so I'll be back in a few days...got to finish those orders! Then drop off product at shops/events for the upcoming Christmas sales. Then plan and shop for our Thanksgiving meal (Jared gets in Wednesday, as does his dad) and then just enjoy family for the rest of the week/weekend. I wish you all good times with your family and friends - Happy Thanksgiving to you all! :o)

xo, devon

Huge, gorgeous, and OLD cathedral in the heart of Aachen

Little bird on a sculpture in the main square in Aachen

Nobis Cafe in Aachen - the best medicine for jet lag :o)

New Owlings & A Darling Bird

The newest owlings have flown in to the shop :o) Got them designed and sewn up in record time - who knew having a baby could make me a better, more efficient little worker?? It really has. Though, it may also have to do with not watching tv anymore, or spending as much time on the computer, but, hey, all that matters is that we're having the best time ever and getting work done - perfectable! (as Jared's dad says - he actually means perfect, not 'able to be perfected' - we say it all the time now as it sounds cute :o)

Anyway, please meet:

Lily the sleepy owling plush (who has already found a home!)

Tree the owling plush (definitely not sleepy eh?)

Anika the sleepy owling plush (using Anna Maria Horner fabric, yep)

Caliope the sleepy owling plush (the same Anna Maria Horner fabric - I abandoned the idea of using it for Mbird's curtains. Wait'll you see how much color/pattern is in there already, then you'll understand)

Sascha the sleepy owling plush (hee hee, the same fabric as my dining room curtains...and if she isn't adopted soon she will be joining my, I mean Miranda's, plush collection!)

And here are some of the latest pics of our girl...and a lil' sneak peek into her unfinished bedroom:

The mural is only maybe 60% completed...I've been focusing so much on my shop and sales and other life stuff that I've slacked off the mural. Plus all we've been using the room for is diaper changing, so I haven't felt the need to pull it together yet. Miranda is starting to sleep longer in her crib (next to our bed) so the day may be coming for me to get reaquainted with her bedroom and get it finished. I'm oh-so-excited to show you the 'after' pictures someday soon! Motivation!

This was such a fun day...it was last Friday - sunny and warm out and since it was Friday and nearing weekend, I was all giddy and felt more free to just hang out and do whatever. I found this adorable outfit for Mbird at Outrageous Outgrowns sale before she was even born. It's like a sort of sailor suit, made in France, and has a little handsewn tag on it that reads 'confetti'. So very cute on her - I took lots of pics. It most likely will not fit her by the time it's that warm again. Did I mention she's like 18lbs and not even 5 and a half months old?? I thought she would be wearing this in Spring or Summer of '09!

One of my new favorites of the Bird...she really is such a happy kid :o) We feel so blessed to have her.

Have a lovely Thursday all...I'm off to felt scarves!!
xo, devon

Owlings on their way!

There will be a very owlish update in just a few hours! Right now I'm choreographing this and Mbird's overdue nap...looking good so far. If they hurry I'll have time to possibly get 5 new & quite lovely owlings into the shop during Miranda's snooze.

And I suppose I'll show ya what I got cleaned today too :o)

xo, devon

hello monday

My Dotty Scarf in Lichen

Goooood Monday morning to you :o) Thought I'd pop in quickly and post my missing Friday Etsy love & say hello and such.

Just saw this on little site called Ecorazzi (not my favorite title, nor my favorite site, but it often has interesting tidbits such as this recent quote from Barack Obama):

“I was just reading an article in The New York Times by Michael Pollan about food and the fact that our entire agricultural system is built on cheap oil. As a consequence, our agriculture sector actually is contributing more greenhouse gases than our transportation sector. And in the mean time, it’s creating monocultures that are vulnerable to national security threats, are now vulnerable to sky-high food prices or crashes in food prices, huge swings in commodity prices, and are partly responsible for the explosion in our healthcare costs because they’re contributing to type 2 diabetes, stroke and heart disease, obesity, all the things that are driving our huge explosion in healthcare costs.”

Jared could tell you that it's very exciting to me that Obama is reading anything written by Michael Pollan. In fact, I think I've driven Jared sort of nuts with all my going on about 'The Omnivore's Dilemma' and how I want us to be more thoughtful about the way we eat and buy food. When I first heard a talk from Mr. Pollan maybe 3 years ago I thought, wow, I wish I could do something about that - I wish I could help to change the farm bill! Thinking, of course, that no administration would be looking at the agricultural system in America anytime soon. But maybe that day is coming. It would be a really huge help to our country (and other countries) - not just to help our farmers, but to increase our health and our security, and to maybe remind us that just because we don't see cost up front doesn't mean we're not paying for it further down the road (I mean c'mon, do you really think eggs can only cost 97 cents a dozen??). Cheap food isn't always what it seems.

But onto the other things...

There are just a few lovely etsy'ers I'd love to feature this week, but they're good ones! Check them out (oh, and check back soon for more goodies posted for the shop, and some super fun pics & video of the Bird - she's getting to be quite the explorer!):

Moss Terrarium by Made by Mavis

Swan Clutch by Red Ruby Rose

Owl Messenger Bag by Mehran

Silver Peas in a Pod Necklace by Sudlow

Have a lovely day everyone...I'll be back later with more of my own goodies!
xo, devon :o)

Hoops!

'Wise Owl' - Original hoop painting by Devon Industry (that's me! :o)

Beautiful day today...gosh, it's unreal - warmish with a nice breeze so all the trees are waving their yellow tinged leaves. Miranda is sleeping on her tummy at the moment - very cute :o) Trying some new 'sleepish' things around here. It's been a tiring week and something had to give. Thus, tummy sleeping! More on what helped make that happen later on...along with some super cute photos from today.

'Running Bunny' - Original hoop painting by Devon Industry

Moving on...because I need to tell you about my latest work!! I'm so excited about these pieces...they combine many things I love - fabric, painting, animals, plushes. I'm calling them hoop paintings. So far I've made 'Running Bunny', 'Wise Owl', and 'Little Bird'. They are on stretched Osnaburg cotton and finished nicely with felt backings and twill ribbon around the edge. I'm working on getting them into my shop - please check back soon! :o)

'Little Bird' - Original hoop painting by Devon Industry

Did you know that Osnaburg cotton was what feed sacks were made of way back when? It's basically a rustic cotton fabric that can really take a beating (I think it's a fabulous alternative to canvas - more delicate, with so much character). I love that it was such a versatile and important fabric during the Great Depression. Many feed sacks later became dresses, aprons, pillows, and anything else that was needed. Good stuff - using what's available so nothing goes to waste. If you're curious about more things Osnaburg check it out here.

Scotia the penguin plush

August the sleepy owling plush

I also have other goodies just listed...hand felted merino wool scarves (my dotty style), plus two new plushes - Scotia the penguin & August the sleepy owling plush.

Fizz scarf in Sunshine, Links scarf in icy blue, and dotty scarf in prawn

I'll be back later (or maybe tomorrow) with Etsy goodies...need to go package orders and toss down some lunch before the Bird wakes. Hope everyone is enjoying this most lovely Friday!!

xo, devon

Etsy love & the day after

My tiny smiler :o)

Last night was the sale at Inside Source & it was a really good time! We definitely had our moments...feeding and diaper changing and packing & not getting out of the house till 15 min. before the event then slugging our way through nearly an hour of traffic to get to San Carlos. Poor Miranda screamed herself silly in the car and basically 'popped' (as Jared called it) - she cried so hard she knocked herself out. By that time I had crawled to the back and was holding her hand while we were trying to exit the highway. The traffic was so atrocious that she finished her crying spell before we could even get two lanes over. When we finally arrived I unloaded and set up while Jared wandered over to REI next door with Mbird in the ergo (she lasted just long enough for me to get all set up, and for Jared to pick out new slippers - which I'm currently wearing, ha!).

Once again, there were so many wonderful people at the event :o) I just love this event - wouldn't miss it. Lovely people, delectable food and drinks (darn it that I didn't get a mojito last night!), lots of activity and lots of happy shoppers! I always do well so it's worth it to get a lot of stuff made and ready - it also sets me up for the rest of the Christmas shopping season.

Jared and I traded off with lil' Miranda...the poor girl was SO tired but did great - even with all the craziness, bright lights, and people in her face. She was definitely an attention getter! At one point a (slightly happy on wine) lady stuck her finger to Miranda's mouth and Miranda sucked on it...ugh!! (it was difficult but I held back my inner freak out...) Mbird's arm kept creeping out of the carrier at everything. There was only so much I could do to keep her from being touched and doted on by well meaning folks. I hope she doesn't come down with something...it's that time of year again...

Anyway, all that aside it was a wonderful time :o) I'll definitely do it again next year (with Mbird at home with Jared, or a sitter!). But we managed and it was worth it. And I have fantastic pile of goodies to load up my shop with & that's always great. Better get on it...naptime is almost over!


Here are my etsy faves of the week (some really good stuff...temptingly good stuff):

Elephant Orwell Clutch by Tsuru Bride

Chicklets Booties by Aurelia and Annalise

Douglas Fir Candleholder by Jeanpelle

Tangle Theory Print by The Big Black Cloud

Vintage Cloud Phone from Domestikate

xo to all & happy weekend!
devon

One more shot of the girl...mercilessly chowing on her world vision hippo.

The big day + a semi big day

August the Owling Plush

Okay, operating on very little sleep here so expect a little rambling and some typos :o)

Wasn't the election SO exciting!?? I had tons of work to do that night but Jared and I stayed up and watched ABC news with the one and only Charlie Gibson. When Charlie got word the polls in the west coast had closed and he could call it, and he DID, we both had that moment of 'WOW!!' and hugged each other and I got tons of goose bumps. It feels very right - yes, not miraculous or that we have a 'savior' for this country now - just someone who can help and really do the best they can (which I think will be pretty darn good). Yay Barack Obama - we are so happy to have you as our 44th president! From the time I saw him while watching the DNC 4 years ago, I thought to myself, 'why isn't that guy running for president'? I suppose a lot of people felt that way too - and so it is :o)

My 'semi' big day/night is tonight. I have my sale at Inside Source and I've been chipping away at work for it for the past few weeks. Last night was the push to finish my labels and gather up the goods. I just know that anything could happen today with MBird and I didn't want to risk not being able to get anything else done but diaper changes and feeding! Life sure has changed! I have to say I think I'm more organized, and speedy, since Miranda has come into the picture. Yesterday I swung through Trader Joe's (with a very tired baby strapped on me) in less than an hour and got groceries for a whole week. No dawdling, no mulling over - just scanning the list, grabbing, and GO! Definitely a change from the old Devon...

I have such fun stuff for tonight - I'm very excited about 2 new things I've been working on :o) I will share photos of them later. They involve fabric, animals, painting, and plushes...! And I really got into making them, so they're probably a keeper and will go in my shop. For now I'll share these cuties who will be going with me tonight.

Lucinda the Penguin Plush

Viggo the Lapdog Plush

Scotia the Penguin Plush

Vespin the Owling Plush

Cross your fingers, and toes, that Miranda hangs in there with us tonight! We'll be smack in the middle of her bedtime when the event begins and we'll be there till probably 9pm. But there wasn't any other way to go around it. If ya can't eat from a bottle you gotta come with mama to the show...

Have a lovely day!!
xo, devon