Grand Opening & Patchwork Recap

Leading up to last weekend, we wondered more than a couple of times what we had gotten ourselves into...a pre-opening party, grand opening day, and Patchwork Long Beach...in 3 consecutive days!? Ready or not is was time for our close-up! Without the tremendous generosity & help of so many friends and family, there is truly no way we would have pulled it off. I'll leave any further sappiness to personal thank-you's! At least tears of gratitude can't smudge internet writing!

A couple of pictures actually exist from the grand opening festivities! We were so caught up in the moment, that these are all we have to share. Our (big) little banner at the top left actually doubled as the backdrop to our Patchwork booth as I'm sure it will for many future events. All it took was some crocheted chains stitched on a drop cloth and the fabulous bunting made by Jessica at Beerandbaking.com (not only did she make the awesome arrow cookies and honeycomb candy at the bottom, but she's a crafty one too!). The pre-opening party was such a hit, our favorite little customer had to take a rest in our comfy lounge area.

Grand opening Saturday was just as fun, but maybe a little windier...we were able to capture our sandwich board (made by Grandpa!) before it's corner was chipped clean off in a gust! Inside, however, we were crocheting and letterpressing up a storm and giving tours of the space! If you didn't make it in last weekend, don't fret, we are always happy to show you the space!

By the time Sunday rolled around, we were running on pure adrenaline. As our first craft fair booth (can you believe it!?) it came together pretty smoothly, but it's amazing how easily things can become disastrous. For example, how did I not realize until the last minute, that there was no way all of our supplies were going to fit in my little Ford Escape? Or that finding your destination can be a matter of having a navigator or not! (Thank you Megan, Jessica & Sean for all your help!!). Our letterpress was a big hit and we still have the gift tag linoleum blocks at the studio if you didn't get a chance to try it out that day. If you did miss the Long Beach show, there's still one more in Santa Ana on the 25th! 

It was so great to meet so many new people over the weekend! If you entered our drawing, keep an eye out on Facebook and in your e-mail as we will be announcing winners soon!!

-Lauren

GRAND OPENING!

Our Grand Opening is finally here! Join us on Saturday, November 10th, to check out the studio and do some fun DIY-ing! We'll be raffling off some great prizes too! We hope to see you soon!

**Please note that we have a big little typo on our official website, and our correct address is 2035 Placentia**

Sorry for any confusion!

Here Comes Halloween!

Get in the spirit and come by this week for two awesome events! First up is a costume workshop/swap on Friday. Come and share ideas and inspiration or show those last minute people how it's done by finishing your costume in the studio. For the swap, bring in those old cat ears or batman cape and see what they're worth to someone else (trade only, please). Friday night we'll be carving pumpkins like mad (scientists!) and we hope you'll join us. To make the night even better, bring in a stencil you've made to share with the group (we can photocopy here). We look forward to seeing you!!

We Love: Imperial Yarn

If you haven't seen this yarn yet, we bet you'll love it at least as much as we do. Right now, we're stocking the Columbia 2-ply mulespun and super soft Erin 3-ply worsted in some seriously beautiful vibrant and neutral colors! We also have some fun options with their Anna cotton/wool twist and the bulky Native Twist and Lariat skeins for amazing texture and quick knits! Hurry and check it out before I buy it all up myself! (Don't worry, we plan on having these beauties around for a long time!)

-Lauren

It's Happening!

We’ve been living so in the moment, that only this moment did we realize to announce…our soft opening is THIS FRIDAY!!! We are so thrilled to share with you not only the fruits of our labor, but of the family and friends who have given so generously countless hours of brain-racking and manual labor!! We hope you will stop by this weekend and help fill the studio with the creativity its been waiting for!

The studio is an evolving space that is ready for you to use and hungry to suit your needs. As we continue to add to our inventory and workshops during our soft opening, we hope you will pardon any quirks and kinks and let us know what you think!

Our new website is on its way, but Workshops are here now! Please check back as we add the Calendar and Workshop descriptions to the blog here and our Facebook page! Workshop registration is available by phone and in store.

Hope to see you all soon!!

Craftcation 2013

We are so excited to be a sponsor of Craftcation 2013! If you haven't read my earlier post expounding the many virtues of this unique conference, Craftcation is four days of indie business lectures on how to start a crafty business, maximizing social media, blogging, in’s & out’s of indie craft shows, etsy, wholesaling, merchandising, accounting, legal issues, branding, website design, marketing on a budget, and more (whew!). And for hands-on fun there are plentiful DIY workshops such as knitting, printing, sewing, canning & preserving, photography, small batch caramels, needle arts, jewelry, embroidery, and bookbinding. Oh, did I mention the awesome extra events like yoga, pop-up shows, cocktail socials and more? We benefited so greatly from the professional and peer advice and networking of the 2012 conference that we can only imagine how they will top it this time!

Whether you are looking to start, maintain or grow your indie business or take a break from your routine and learn new skills while networking, it's an event not to be missed. Registration opened September 1st, so be sure to sign up before it sells out!

Lauren

Womannequins

Last week we took another trip up to LA, this time with stops at PGM and the fashion district to pick up some dress forms for the studio and some awesome knit fabrics for the shop! Not only do we love the dress forms we got, but the PGM warehouse was a treat in itself, so many shapes and sizes (we can't wait to expand to men's and children's soon)!

Below is a snapshot of our shiny new purchases in the back of the cargo van (that's right, we're renting so many trucks lately, I just might trade in my sewing machine for a big rig!).

More progress photos coming soon on our facebook page!

-Lauren