January 21, 2011

January Projects

Hannah and I have been working quietly (okay, not so quietly, really) behind the scenes since recovering from the holidays.  We've been having weekly meetings and getting quite a bit accomplished, though the poor blog has suffered somewhat.  We just wanted to let you all know we're still here, and are so excited about our new website launching soon.

I know we've talked about it for a while now, but we just got the "rough draft" copy sent to us and couldn't be happier.  With just a few tweaks, we'll have it up and running in no time!  And we will have e-commerce for those who just want to buy straight from the website (without going through etsy). 

We're also close to finishing our press kit which will got out to certain blogs, boutiques, magazines, and local TV stations.  Hopefully, we'll have a date soon that we can tell you all about the launch.  Oh- and don't worry, we're keeping the blog (it may have a new address, but we'll tell you all), and plan on doing more tutorials soon.

Hannah started making iPad covers and after she made a laptop cover for her computer and mine, she started making more- ours are 15", but as always, we take custom orders, so just email us or convo us on etsy if you're interested in having a one-of-a-kind cover for your latest techie gadget!

Here's a little peek at some of the goodies we've been making:

we're starting to think Spring!

a little craft organizer- grommets are going in the top so you can hang it on the wall



laptop case with my most favorite fabric ever





iPad cases- these were scooped up out of our etsy shop almost as soon as they were listed!  yea!

these cute dog collars almost make me wish I had a dog!

So even though we have been working on a lot of logistical things behind the scenes here at FlyChicks, we're still managing to remain crafty and productive (lots of knitting going on too!).  Hope you all are enjoying the new year- we're ready for Spring!  Can you tell by the purse above with the fun, bright graphics?

January 3, 2011

Homemade Gifts

This year, like many in the past, I made a lot of the gifts I gave out for Christmas.  I know I teased you a little with last week's post of all the wrapping I did, but I didn't want to give away any clues to my family in case they were reading!  So here are some of the gifts I crafted:

I started off with this blue box that housed something in it's former life, then sanded it and painted it black

I bought some pens

a booklight
(I stole borrowed his a couple of years ago)

and found some great printables online including library cards



and some cute little list books (this gal also has some super cute books for sale in her etsy shop!)


and put it all together to make a little library kit for my son:



He and I share a love of books and feel a twinge of sadness that it all seems to be going digital, so I thought he'd appreciate this for the books he already owns.

When my son was in town for Thanksgiving, we went to a craft fair and he saw a scarf that resembled this one, but it was grey and it was crocheted.  He asked me if I could make one like it in black; I told him I could try knitting one and see how it turned out.  He loves it!  I'm so glad- it looks great on him, too.  It's an infinity scarf, so he can wear it like a chain, or double it up to keep warm. 



I decided to "tea stain" some coffee filters and flour sack towels for a few projects.  I live in an apartment, and it was 30 degrees out, so I opted to dry them right there in my kitchen window.  Once dry, the filters flattened out nicely and held a little texture to make these snowflakes that I used for wrapping the presents.
 And with the flour sacks, I ironed them and used freezer paper stencils to make these cute little kitchen towels for my sister:

Other than that, I just printed out some other "freebies" I got off the web, cut them out accordingly, and packaged them as nicely as I could so they could pass for a gift:)

We hope your holidays were filled with warmth and joy and that this new year brings everyone great happiness.

Hannah moved to a new home with her fiance and son over the New Year's weekend and her sewing studio is no longer in the dungeon (the basement)!  She couldn't be more excited- so no more pictures with bad lighting- at least from her house.  I'm still a night owl, so I'll have to work on that!

Cheers to a great new year!