Hollywood.

Seriously.  Hollywood.

That's where these pillows and bunnies are headed.  To join a sweet set of twins.

Who live in Hollywood.  Seriously.  :)

Bundle Up for Winter!

Where I live we are having an unusually warm November, but winter will be upon us all before we know it. So some of my Liten Venn* characters are prepared with their winter scarves! Gregory the Penguin and Sasha the Polar Bear are happy to model for you.

The Liten Venns are going to be showing up in many varieties this holiday season. They make great stocking stuffers as most are 6 inches tall and 6 inches wide (from wing to wing or paw to paw). Most of them have some small parts so are for children 3 and up; but I'm always happy to substitute those small pieces with baby-safe features! Exchanging plastic eyes and noses for felt eyes and noses make a Liten Venn completely safe for baby.

So pop by my Etsy shop often and wander the aisles. Hot chocolate and sugar cookies on the table in front. *wink*

*Liten Venn is Norwegian for Small Friend ~ an homage to my Norwegian heritage.

How Time Flies...

With the countdown to Halloween on ~ in my head, it has already happened! ha! That's what happens in retail, I guess. When you have a product to sell, you have to stay ahead of the game, so to speak. On a personal level it takes some of the surprise of out holidays for me; but believe me, I still enjoy them!

So always looking ahead I turn then to my sketches I so roughly drew (believe me, I'm no sketch artist) for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah and Christmas it got me thinking that maybe my fabulous friends out there in cyberspace might enjoy knowing how my Wee Ones and Liten Venns come to be. I know I love learning how artisans, musicians, artists - any creative person - go about their craft; maybe you do, too.

My process is pretty simple actually. First and probably most important, I find inspiration everywhere - in movies, in cartoons, books, magazines or just people-watching. I often sort thru these inspirations in my head and something solid begins to take form ~ more often than not ~ on my morning walks with my dog.

Then I turn to my cheap little sketch book (it is a kid's drawing pad from Target). Almost all of my holiday sketches - 40+ total - this year were dreamt up and drawn while on a road trip to and from the Midwest (my Mom turned 92 recently). It gave me something to do rather than remind my husband of the speed limit. :) When I'm home, I keep a notepad with me at all times, especially on my bedside table for ideas that come in the night - they are quite often some of my favorites! (Think zombies.)

I then take the sketches and marry them with my basic template of a pattern and tweak the pattern to match the sketch (which becomes easier over time). I head to my fabric remnants first and use every bit of remnant I can to cut the pattern.

And from there the Wee One or Liten Venn is born. And I have to admit, the thing I enjoy most is creating a new character and seeing it come to life for the first time.

I absolutely love what I do. I posted on my Facebook page one day that I am so lucky to do something every day that makes me laugh ~ because almost every time I look at a completed Wee One or Liten Venn ~ I laugh.

TA DA!!!

Today, just out of curiosity, I thought I would tally up my productivity for the last six weeks. Probably something I should be doing on a regular basis anyway ~ you know from a time management perspective, etc. Anyhoo ~ I've been pretty busy lately and was curious to see how productive I've been.

After calculating spreadsheets and invoices, etc. here's I came up with. In the last 6 weeks I have produced:

Halloween Ghoulies (Wee Ones and Liten Venns): 87

BC Buddies (Wee Ones supporting Susan G. Komen): 30

Assorted Other Items - Etsy and Special Orders (Wee Ones, Liten Venns, Plush Pillows, Zen Baby Bibs, Knit Hats): 43

Grand Total ***Drum roll*** : 160 items

I thought I was busy. ;-) Christmas and Hanukkah? Bring it! :)