Cabin in the City

Books, cats and midwestern charm.

Crafts

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Stitchy Woman // Fall + Halloween Cross Stitch Plans

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via The Witchy Stitcher

While staying home, I haven’t been doing a lot of embroidery. Since in-person craft fairs are on hold, I decided to put my stitching business on hold (a few commissioned projects aside).

But I haven’t put the needle down! In fact, I’ve been working on cross stitch more and more while quarantining. I’ve finished up this cute Schrute Farms piece and made some major headway on this St. Basil’s project.

Since I’ve really been making some good progress on this slow form of stitching, I figured I could slate in a few seasonal projects for my favorite time of year: spooky season!

I downloaded a handful of patterns to keep me busy all through fall, and I’m organizing a virtual Stitchy Woman Club at work. Having Hocus Pocus or The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina on in the background isn’t mandatory but strongly encouraged.

via The Witchy Stitcher

Here are the patterns I picked up:

I’m so excited to get moving and grooving on these with a few spooky shows on in the background. Happy haunting, everyone!

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Coming Soon // Cream City Creatives

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This one’s coming up fast, folks!

I’ll be at Cream City Creatives Holiday Market this Sunday from 10-3 at Turner Hall. It’s my first Milwaukee show, so I’m pretty darn excited! That was one of my goals for 2018 and I’m almost there!

You’ll find me and 50+ Midwest makers at this show. I’m personally excited to see what Renee Graef has to offer – she was an illustrator for American Girl! But there are lots of other folks, too, so you’ll find something for all those people left on your list!

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Coming Soon // Black Friday Market + Pub Crawl

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Good news, everyone! Madison Makers Market is back with another makers fair and pub crawl event. And you know Kaminski Handicraft had to be there! I had so much fun at the spring show that it was easy to accept the invitation to be in the Black Friday one. I’ll be back at Old Sugar Distillery, too, which is, in my opinion, the best spot on the pub crawl route. They’ve got some really terrific craft cocktails – perfect for sipping while you shop.

I’m so excited that this event is on Black Friday! I’m not a Black Friday shopper myself – I just can’t handle the chaos. But I really love this alternative for shoppers that want to support small businesses and also take the biggest shopping day of the year just a bit slower. And seriously, what a fun thing to do with family and friends who have come in from out of town!Hope to see you there!

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Short Story: A Spooky 5-Minute Spiderweb

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When it comes to most crafts, I take it pretty slow. Stitching, latch hook, sewing – all those projects take hours (and hours and hours). That doesn’t mean I don’t like a quick craft once in a while, especially during a busy season. And if that craft is spooky, well, all the better.

That’s where this little spiderweb hoop comes in. I’m sure you can figure this one out just from the photo, but I’ll walk you through it anyways. Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Embroidery hoop
  • Fabric doily, about two inches larger than your hoop
  • Black craft paint
  • Plastic spider
  • Ribbon

Assembling this all is pretty easy. But before you start putting it together, give your embroidery hoop (the inner and outer hoops) a quick coat of paint. I chose satin black, but orange, pewter or another metallic would be cool, too.

Once that’s dry (I let it dry overnight), fit the doily into the hoop. I like the center to be a bit off kilter. Nature’s not perfect, ya know. Tighten the hoop up and stretch the doily so there are no wrinkles and it’s not all misshapen.

Then flip the hoop over and trim the doily leaving about a half inch around the perimeter. I’ll be honest, this felt unnatural to me cutting up a perfectly good doily, but I know where I can go for some more.

Anyways, once you’ve got that trimmed, just stick the rough edge down with some hot glue. Regular craft glue would would here too, but hot glue is faster. Also, I know my glue gun looks a mess. It gets a lot of use.

Once it’s all fixed together, all you have to do is stick on that spider and tie a ribbon around the top. I had some black lace stuff laying around and I love it, but I think that some black velvet would be very spooky chic.

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Craft Fair + Pub-Crawl // A Recap

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Back in May, I participated in my second ever craft fair – the Madison Makers Market + Pub-Crawl – and it was a blast! I ate, drank, sold some crafties and made a cool trade with a new maker friend. But let’s get into it.

Prepping

Last show, I was stressed to the max stitching up 50 different hoops. Since it was my first one, I had zero idea what to expect. This time around, I was a bit more confident. Plus, I had about 35 hoops left in my inventory for the selling which meant I didn’t have to spend every spare minute stitching. Instead, I stitched up 18 over the course of about four weeks which was a pretty good schedule. I also had friends giving me some A+ hoop recommendations. Oh! And a lovely gal PM-ed me before the show asking about RuPaul’s Drag Race hoops and I was happy to oblige. I’m thinking a not today, Satan, not today hoop will become a new standard.

The Show + Bar

Like last time, I brought my mom to be my helper. She’s very patient and calm, which was good because as an anxious person, I was low key freaking out that morning.

Unlike last time, though, this show wasn’t held in a single location. Instead Madison Makers Market had the most amazing idea of having crafters set up booths in a few bars on Madison’s East Side. Eat, drink, buy crafts – it’s the perfect day. I was lucky enough to get a space in the new-ish Old Sugar Distillery where the light was phenomenal and the other vendors very kind. Prior to opening for the day, I got to meet Sarah from Gypsy Adornment in person (had been following her Instagram for a hot minute), and we had a little swap. She nabbed a Queer Eye hoop and I got a witchy lariat necklace in exchange. My only regret is that I couldn’t steal away to see the other makers in the other bars.

Once the doors opened, though, I was pretty surprised with how steady business was! Lots of folks were browsing around with their Dark & Stormies, picking up grad gifts and last-minute Mother’s Day presents. The energy of the space was definitely right and the bar was hopping all afternoon. I was 100% into it, and I think people were into me too! I sold about 18 hoops by the day’s end, which felt great!

Now that I’ve got two fairs done and dusted, I’m feeling a bit more confident about my pieces. Once I’m done with my pal’s wedding hoop, I’m going to start stocking up again. You never know when the next fair might be!

• • •

P.S. You can find my hoops at my Etsy shop always! PM me for custom orders!

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A Mashup Made in Heaven // Craft Fair + Pub-Crawl

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I’ve got some cool news, folks! Next month I’ll be setting up shop for Madison Makers Spring Market & Pub-Crawl.

As you can tell by the name, this is a craft fair unlike any other. Dozens of makers will be setting up shop in a handful of Madison bars – all located within a few blocks of one another. It’s the perfect event for day-drinkers and craft-lovers (me and also me).

I’ll be stationed at Old Sugar Distillery on East Main Street. I’ve never been to this spot, but it looks incredible! The organizer of the event says this space is filled with lots of natural light (big plus for sellers) and, from what I can tell, it has a ton of amazing cocktails ready for the sipping (big plus for everyone!).

I’m really looking forward to setting up shop, hanging out with my mom and enjoying a good ol’ dark and stormy. I feel so much better about this show now that I’ve got one under my belt and now that I’ve got some inventory already prepped. I’m still planning on making some new pieces, though. You can see what’s coming from @kaminskihandicraft on Instagram.

For more details about the event, be sure to check it out on Facebook!

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Get a Hobby, 70s Style

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I am the woman of a million hobbies. Cross stitch? Yeah, I do that. Baking? Duh. Sewing? You wanna see my fabric stash? Paper floristry? I’ve dabbled.

For all those reasons (plus plenty more), I do not need another hobby. But lately have I ever been tempted. Mind you these aren’t just standard crafting temptations, these are some real retro hobbies calling to me. So let’s flashback to the 70s and I’ll tell you all about my crafting dreams.

Latch Hook

Back when I was about nine, my mom bought me a white tiger latch hook kit from our local Ben Franklin. I worked away on that thing what felt like forever and I never ever finished it. But I recently searched for vintage latch hook kits online, and let me tell you, there are so many good ones. Yes, better than a white tiger.

So I ordered this amazingly ’70s mushroom kit off of Ebay and have been working on it tirelessly. I know exactly what wood paneled wall it belongs on when I finish.

Macrame

Looking at my house, it just screams 1960s (also 1970s). The wood paneled walls are just dying for a really kitschy piece of art (I mean, other than the taxidermied fish and Green Lady painting). That’s where I think a really great piece of macrame would come in handy.

I already nabbed an old book from my mother-in-law. All I need is yards and yards of rope!

Weaving

In the same vein as macrame, I decided that I need to take up weaving. Who would have thought that a time consuming craft like this would be up my alley? But I think it is, which is why I was so glad to get this weaving kit for Christmas. As soon as I’m done with this small scale design, I’ve got some major weaving plans (in theory).

Crewel

And to top it all off – one more good fiber art. Growing up, I have such distinct memories of a few crewel pieces my mom had hung up in our home, especially one that had little cows with strands of floss for tails. I swear if I can get my hands on that kit, I’d stitch that up so fast (and hang it in my kitchen where it belongs). Maybe I’ll scope that one out online and add it to my ever-growing craft queue.

• • •

Now with one of these old school crafties underway, I’m hoping to build up a little momentum! If you’ve given any of these a try, let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear how you started out!

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Paper Flower Mania

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Periodically, I get myself in way over my head with a project. Some readers here might remember how I managed to plan a full-blown wedding in just five months. Or that time when I worked my fingers literally raw making this tarot card for an art show. Or, most recently, when I spent every spare minute for six weeks making hoops for a craft show.

I know how to do it, folks. Step one: Take on giant projects, no questions asked. Step two: Work yourself into a frenzy and don’t stop ’til it’s done. Step three: Spend an excessive amount of time recouping from that mania. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Which brings me to my latest giant project! Last month I helped a good family friend decorate for her daughter’s baby shower. She’s so generous and thoughtful, so it goes without saying that she wanted this shower to be incredibly special.

That’s where I come in (not to toot my own horn). To take this pineapple-themed shower from 10/10 to 11/10, I was recruited to make a few tropical centerpieces to decorate the tables. Since I’m an OK flower arranger, I suggested that I fix up some centerpieces for the party. Unfortunately, the mom-to-be is allergic to flowers. Fortunately, I spent a lot of time last year learning how to make paper flowers. It was the perfect opportunity to get me back into my paper flower groove while also being useful. Win-win!

With some templates from Lia Griffith (and only a week to work once my supplies arrived!), I went to town making paper ginger flowers, heliconia, birds of paradise, pincushion proteas, Cala lilies and a whole mess of greens. I put my Cricut to work cutting out dozens of leaves, but when it came to the flowers, well, let’s just say it was all hands on deck!

In the midst of my paper flower frenzy.

In the end, I made nine centerpieces. There were a few late nights putting all these together, but that’s what reruns of Unsolved Mysteries are for!

After I finished up with this, my first big project of 2018, I basked in the glory of a job well done and binge watched plenty of 30 Rock. Now, after resting, it’s time for another big project. Like I said, lather, rinse, repeat.

 

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The Mini Crafty Fair

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I planned on writing this post immediately following the Mini Crafty Fair (that was all the way back on December 16!). But I’m glad I waited a bit to give myself a little perspective on the whole business of things. Also this is my third recap in a week. You sick of them yet?

But let’s start at the beginning! Back in December, I set up my first-ever booth at the Goodman Community Center in Madison for the Mini Crafty Fair. I’d been applying to fairs for a few months (after deciding to act on a longtime goal) and I was thrilled to set up shop with the Crafty Fair. It was a pretty chaotic ride, but I’m thrilled I did it. Here’s how the whole journey went:

The Days Before

Leading up to the big day, I was an absolute wreck. And by “leading up” I mean at least the three weeks prior. I was stressed to the max about hitting an arbitrary goal I set for myself. You see, I wanted to create at least 50 hoops to take with me and I was going to get to that number or die trying. While I sacrificed a lot of time and shed quite a few tears, I made it!

The Setup

During my extended panic period, I didn’t have much time to worry about my display. I had been looking for ideas online and was coming up empty. Instead of panicking about not having the most creative setup, I trusted my gut and drew up a pretty simple plan.

My dad, God bless him, made me two easels for displaying hoops. With those, I had a pretty good scaffolding for my setup. I just filled it in with a simple runner that I sewed, a felt letter board (#basiccraftingbitch) and some twinkle lights that I impulse bought at Target.

For how little time I put into planning the table (though, don’t get me wrong, I still put in some time). I was thrilled with how it turned out! It was pretty minimal, but it was easy to set up, easy to shop (hopefully) and a total breeze to disassemble.

The Fair Itself

The day-of, I was lucky enough to have the help of my mom. She picked me up at the crack of dawn (OK, just 7:45am) and drove me all they way out to Madison and helped me set up my table.

Since my booth wasn’t that elaborate, it took only a few minutes to set up and we had plenty of time to see what a lot of the other crafters were up to (and even buy a few things ourselves, like this adorable Old Fashioned ornament!).

The fair opened at 10:00 and I was lucky enough to get a sale in the first ten minutes! A sweet girl picked up a little blerg hoop and I was officially in business! Throughout the morning, I sold a few of my favorite pieces off to really great ladies and that really put me in a good mood. Well, that and being visited by my sisters, aunts, husband, mother-in-law and my oldest friend. Special guests are always welcome!

Admittedly, I kind of got down on myself for the last hour of the fair. I had made a handful of sales, but didn’t really make the splash I was hoping. Maybe my references were a little too specific (that’s what my mom said, but I stand by all my You go, Glen Coco! hoops); more likely, my expectations were way too high. Mostly I came to the uncomfortable conclusion that I spent so much of my free time making an absurd amount of hoops, and in the end, a lot of that work wasn’t necessary.

But I’m not going to get down on myself about that now, because at the end of the day, I set a goal for myself and I achieved it! Plus, if I decide to do another fair in the future, I’ve got a little experience under my belt!

The Cherry On Top

After a long day of hoop hawking, my family was sweet enough to indulge me at the Old Fashioned on the Capitol square. This place is one of my favorite restaurants, and they’re the only bar I know of (south of Wausau, at least) that sells brandy slushes. So I got to sip on one of those and enjoyed some beer cheese soup, onion rings and a prime rib sandwich. It was a good way to wrap up the day and it felt like a great kick-off to the holidays.

At the end of the day, this was a HUGE learning experience for me. And I sort of have the itch to do another!

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It’s Getting Real: Kaminski Handicraft @ the Mini Crafty Fair

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Remember how I said I had something up my sleeve in my small goals post from November? Well, it’s true! On December 16, I’ll be participating in the Mini Crafty Fair in Madison!

I’m so so thrilled to be a part of this holiday market. My mom and I have visited this pre-Christmas fair for a few years now and we always discover the best artists and makers (and we come home with lots of goodies).

But I’m also thrilled because this is my first time taking Kaminski Handicraft out into the wild! As my first fair, I’m banking on it being a major learning experience, but you gotta start somewhere! I’ve recruited my mom to be my helper for the day, my husband to help me build a display or two and pretty much all of my friends to come check me out.

With only a few weeks until the fair, I’m kicking my stitching into overdrive. New fabrics, new designs, new new new. I’ll admit that my stress levels are a little high, but I’ve got a few dedicated stitching days planned to help me get some hoops completed. I’m thinking 50 is the magic number, but we’ll see!

I’ll probably write about this more here and on Instagram before the event, but here are the details anyways: The Mini Crafty Fair, Saturday, December 16, 10AM-4PM at the Goodman Community Center in Madison, WI. Or to make it really easy, check out the event on Facebook.

I hope to see you local folks there!