black friday ... / November 27, 2009 by jen geigley

Want to get some holiday shopping done, but don't want to subject yourself to the crazy big-box store crowds? Come out to Market Day instead (and bring the whole family!) Go here to see the lovely Cat Rocketship's top five reasons to come to Market Day. (Including Mooncheez tomato soup/grilled cheese sandwiches and free papercrafts for kids.) Hope to see you there – be sure to stop and say hi!

yes, i am. (thankful) / November 25, 2009 by jen geigley

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. – Thornton Wilder

As I'm making pie and cookies and vegetarian lasagna today (with my little helper,) I'm feeling pretty grateful for our little family and the little spot we've made for ourselves in this big world. I have to remember that each day we spend together and every little thing we do is pretty awesome.

And this week, I was reminded how grateful I am for friends like these. This gang goes way back. Now we're watching each others' kids grow taller, year after year.

And I've gotta admit that I'm also a little bit thankful that I'll have a fun way to spend Black Friday – hanging out at Market Day with other crafty peeps. It sure beats camping outside of Best Buy. :)

Here's what I'll have on hand if you stop by on Friday ... (well, and other stuff that I didn't have time to take photos of.)

And here are some lovely pics from last weekend's Craft Saturday – what a fun day spent drinking coffee and chatting with my pal Erin. Thank you to everyone who came out to see us!

(And a big thanks to Joe and Danelle for another super fun event.)

Market Day's Black Friday Sale is sure to be another great opportunity to buy local, buy creative (and save some cash, too.) Come out to see dozens of vendors with handmade, art and vintage wares. You can find us at 118 SE 4th Street in the Market Building (two blocks off Court Ave) from 10am-4pm ... this Friday! Ditch the mall + big box stores and come hang with us instead. (Bring the whole family!)

knitknitknitknitsleepknitknit / November 20, 2009 by jen geigley

Knitting projects ...

See all of these and more in person – just come out to Craft Saturday tomorrow.

I'm bringing some new paintings, too. I've had a bunch of requests for of batman and the sandwich guy, so here you go.

In honor of all you New Moon fans, I attempted to knit Bella's La Push hat last night.

(This could make the perfect gift!) photo of my hat coming soon ...

And I finished this lovely thing last week.

The Chorley Wrap from Rowan Magazine 46.

I'm in love (and it took under four days to knit!) It's extremely thick and warm and cozy. (Yeah, this is not for sale.) ;)

Just a little reminder of a few local events you should definitely be checking out, especially if you've got some holiday shopping to do. Tonight is the Holiday Promenade in the East Village (and the weather is going to be fantastic.)

While you're there, be sure to stop by SMASH (now Raygun) for their big name-change party.

And you must also check out the new Ephemera location to say hi to my pals Arin and Karen. Their new digs are pretty amazing! You can also find a new colorful pile of my hand-knits there.

Tomorrow marks Craft Saturday's 4th Annual holiday show – you don't want to miss it! Get a most excellent start on your holiday shopping adventure. We'll be there from noon to six.

And Market Day is next Friday, Black Friday. Shopping local has never looked so good.

Oh yeah – I'm also guest blogging one more time at Smile and Wave today! Jump over to check out what's going on over there (I've loved all the guest posters this month) and see who won the giveaway. (Happy Friday!)

truly creative type / November 16, 2009 by jen geigley

I know you've seen this book by Rob Ryan, right? His work is everywhere, and I actually picked up an extra copy of This is For You last summer at UOs while I was in Kansas City. And I'm giving it away this week at The Creative Type.

This week's challenge is an ode to Rob Ryan's papercuts (stop over to see what our lovely guest Kara Haupt made!) And here's my page. Some of it is cut paper, and the rest is a mix of paint, Sharpie and good old Hambly. Here are some of my favorite Rob Ryan pieces, which served as inspiration. These are all cut from paper, by the way. See more in his shop and on his blog.

So what else is going on around here?

D.I.Y. Night at Mars Cafe is back. More info here.

Excited to get my hands on the Handmade Nation documentary DVD. (Get it here.)

And Kim, my pal from across the pond, has added some fun things to her shop, Art=Happy. See more here.

I'm teaching my first class at Ephemera tonight. I'm really excited!

And this Saturday is Craft Saturday's 4th Annual Holiday Show. It's the perfect time to start your holiday shopping – you'll be sure to find lots of one-of-a-kind handmade gifts. Come out to see us at the Fourth Street Theatre, downtown next to Java Joe's from noon to six. (Check back this week to see lots of new hand-knits that I'll be bringing!)

guest blogging / November 16, 2009 by jen geigley

Today you can find me guest blogging over at my pal Rachel's blog, Smile and Wave. With the arrival of new baby Ruby, she has wisely scheduled some time off to spend with the kiddos and asked a few of us internet pals to fill in here and there.

I'm so honored and excited that she asked! Did you know that Rachel has been featured on The Knot, Creature Comforts, Apartment Therapy, The Kitchn, ohdeeoh, sfgirlbybay, Poppy Talk, Design Sponge, Modish, Scrap Scene and Design for Mankind? If you don't already follow her blog, you should. (photo from Smile and Wave)

[photo credit ... via freckled nest]
So hop on over to see some serious eye candy ... there just might be a giveaway, too.

shopping local for the holidays / November 10, 2009 by jen geigley

I'm knitting as fast as I can to get ready for two local craft shows in November. I'm super excited for the return of Craft Saturday, November 21st from noon-6pm. We'll be hanging out at the Fourth Street Theatre, next to Java Joe's. Grab some coffee and shop for one-of-a-kind handmade holiday gifts.

And what better way to spend Black Friday than to come out to Market Day! You know you didn't want to be part of the insanity at the big box stores or the mall anyway. Bring the fam out to the East Village to see dozens of vendors at the Market Building on 118 SE 4th Street, November 27 from 10am-4pm. Mark those calendars.

book nerd. / November 5, 2009 by jen geigley

I bought this book a couple of weeks ago and can't wait to fill it up ... pages upon pages of amazingness waiting to be recorded.

The first list page I opened up to was this one - epic. I'm dying to spend a whole weekend with nothing but these lists and a pen and get it all written down.

Two more awesome scores ... this craft planner (which is beyond impressive and useful) and a book of iron-on transfers by Mike Perry.

(More Mike Perry.)

I got this killer book from my pal Jamaica in the mail, which totally made my day. Letterpressed cover and all. I'm already behind, but I'm using this little guy to play along with her book of lists project. You should too, because it's brilliant. Now is a great time to jump in – she's on list #2, so it will be easy to catch up.

And I finally finished and mailed off my half of a little long-distance project we had been working on.

Two books in one, half hers and half mine.

It's kind of like being pen-pals, but better. Nerdy paper + book-loving pen-pals.

a little bit of this, a little bit of that. / November 3, 2009 by jen geigley

A little bit of now ... (this page is for the latest challenge at the Creative Type.) I had to list all of the nicknames we've come up with for Lo since she was born. There are zillions of them and they probably only make sense to us, but I know they'll be a riot to look back on someday. For sweet girl's sake, I kindly hid them behind her photo so she won't be totally embarrassed should her prom date come across this page one day. (Dude, your parents called you Ludatis? Stinky Von Stinkerson? Mini Buns?) I bet you wish you could read the rest of the list, right?

A little bit of then. For today's Dare. We're getting all nostalgic on you today. It's about things you never told someone, whatever that means to you. I went with my grandparents for this one, because they were a huge part of my life growing up. There are a lot of other things I could have listed here, like how I think of my grandma every time I make pizza. Or how grandpa used to tell me that hot water gets things clean but cold water rinses soap out the best. I've been saving this piece of paper (the floral background sheet) in hopes of using it for this exact page for five years, ever since I started scrapbooking in 2004. Seriously. It reminds me of something in my grandparents' house ... it might have been a chair, or curtains, the colors in the carpet, or maybe it was just fabric my grandma had. I'm just really happy I was able to find it.

All of this nostalgia brings me to this month's kit from The Dozens. I haven't splurged on a kit in a long time but this one was calling my name. It's full of Frank Lloyd Wright, 1920s Arts and Crafts, art deco, greek key patterns, Piet Mondrian and I couldn't say no. Can't wait to get for this box to arrive on my doorstep - yay!

our weekend looked like this... / November 2, 2009 by jen geigley

Trick-or-treating fun with a pal dressed up as Super Martian Robot girl. (Because who else would DJ Lance Rock hang out with?)

The best jack-o-lanterns on the block – which included a Slipknot pumpkin (in the middle.) This house was actually used for the filming of Slipknot's 'Duality' video, which we got to watch since we live so close.

After trick-or-treating, we crashed the Halloween party at great aunt Chris's house and filled up on popcorn balls and treats of all kinds.

Arts and crafts at Ollie's costume party.

Pumpkins, googly eyes and candy corn.

Decorating Nutter Butter ghost cookies.

On Sunday, we hit up the Dia de los Muertos/Day of the Dead celebration at The Des Moines Art Center.

Food, music, art and gorgeous colors everywhere.

We even got to decorate a sugar skull.

He ended up looking like this. (ha!)

The nice warm weather made for a pretty awesome walk through the leaves behind the Art Center.

And one last chance to play in the leaves.

You can't resist taking a turn to sit in the massive egg-shaped sculptures.

Hello November. There's no denying it ... fall is here.

happy halloween / October 30, 2009 by jen geigley

It's that time of year! (Although I kind of feel like it's been Halloween for two months already.)

But maybe it just feels like that when you have a little one who is uncontrollably excited about trick-or-treating and pumpkins and costumes.

We took this cutie out to pick out a couple of pumpkins this week.

And of course, she was very excited.

Who doesn't love pumpkins?

And this place had such a huge selection. I was tempted to get all Martha Stewart with the crazy pumpkin varieties but we just went with the plain big orange ones. :)

Tonight, we'll be taking our little DJ Lotus Rock trick-or-treating around the 'hood to visit some of our favorite neighbors.

This is the third time she's worn her costume, so we're getting a lot of use out of it. We're also hoping to hang out with our little pal, Stella, who is dressing up as Super Martian Robot girl from YGG.