It's Show Season!

(Oh, look! We still have a blog!)

It's that time of year again, when the weather starts moving away from stupid-hot and people start thinking about the holidays. It's...show season!

We took part in our first show of the season - Aim High, at the Wigwam Resort - about a week and a half ago. It was great to get out and have the chance to visit with people, and we met some really great new friends, too!

For the Aim High show we were limited to a six foot table and a few other vendors had arrived with kid's clothing, so we limited our offerings to primarily non-kids things. I was surprised by how many people we ended up talking to about our kid's stuff, though.

We debuted Benah's new coaster sets at the show, along with some new bag designs and newly redesigned packaging on our soaps. They were yummy before, but now they're extra-super-cute, too.

We had some fun new aprons, and debuted our new pillow covers, too. (Mom did some seriously gorgeous work on those pillows in the front basket. Photographs do *not* do them justice.)

We also had some new wall signs and all of our new tote bags in attendance.

We're putting a few new listings into place, but pretty much everything is available in our main shop or home shop.

Friday Feature - Ratcha, from DooDesign

This week, I'm very excited to introduce Ratcha, from DooDesign. Ratcha makes some of the most adorable items I've come across on Etsy, and I'm thrilled that she's sharing a bit of her story with us. :)

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I am a mom with two children. I am 40 years old. I grew up with an average family in a small town in northern Thailand. My mother is a seamstress and she has a sewing shop and native fabric store and it grew up, respectively. So, I learned many things from my mother about sewing in my childhood. After graduated a degree in fine arts, I had the opportunity to work in clothing design at Department of Export Promotion and Design Institute of Lanna in Chiangmai. Currently, I am working helping my brother in his Buddha factory as the export assistance.

When did you first begin creating?

As I can remember, I have started to build lots of things when I was young, I remember that I love to do a floating basket "Krathong" is made from banana leaves, and I do it sale in the festival as well. But, if it is to create products to sell in my store. I started creating it around 6-7 months ago.

What led you to open a shop for your art/craft?

Because have time for family and spending time at home enough. I use materials I have and bought some to produce as the product that I feel is valuable because it is a craft that anyone may be looking for. It is a great way to make money without having to go out. And it is the inspiration to lead me open the shop.

What is a typical work day like for you?

Part is that my responsibility as an employee in my brother’s factory. Another part is work that I am responsible for my children and parents as a daughter and a mom.

How do you juggle the many tasks of running a creative business?

My job is not that big and too much busy. So it is not difficult to manage or plan. I just think of what I will need to do tomorrow, supply of materials and creating when I have time. That is simple of care and manages to create my product each and every day.

What is your favorite item that you’ve created, ever?

It is the handbag that I have sold out. I created 2 handbags with wooden handles different color. One I placed in my shop. And the other one I gave to my mother a birthday present to her.

What is your favorite item in your shop, now?

My favorite item is the pink handbags with 2 fabric flowers that I have left 1 in my shop. It took time to create and I do like the silk flowers as well.

Is there anything that you would like to learn or do to expand on or improve what you create now?

No… ^_^

What advice would you share with other artists/crafters who sell their items?

Try to find time to learn and view the results of your friend seller and communication, exchange of ideas, talk or share links or blocks. And especially is community. Social network is another way to communicate news to the people in our world to let them know your shop.

Aside from creating, what do you enjoy doing?

I enjoy cooking, sporting, and taking a photograph everywhere I go.

If you could do anything at all, what would it be? Why?

Hahaa…ok. I wanted to create a new world of freedom, with the smile of the people. I believe this makes our planet livable. The problem with people in society came from "people" as the cause. The selfishness of the people caused by the violence. At the same time I do not want the flood, storm, earthquake or other natural disasters that cause the loss, fear it means the suffering of the people.

Where would you travel if time and money were no object? Why?

I would like to go to the beach or find beautiful island somewhere in the world. I will need to feel relax, no need to be worried for anything. Just lay down and do what ever I want to do.

Where can we find you online? (Etsy shop, blog, etc)

Etsy: http://www.doodesign.etsy.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/DooDesign/337006332976116
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/doodesignshop
Blog: http://ratchaleonard.blogspot.com
Blog: http://doodesignshop.worldpress.com

Thank you, Ratcha, for taking the time to share a bit about yourself and your process!

Featured at Simply Cherise!

Oops! Somehow I forgot to post this yesterday, but we were featured over at Simply Cherise this week!

She's got a really nice blog (as well as her own Etsy shop).

If you're in business for herself, I recommend checking out the post she wrote just prior to our feature. She talks about putting together a manual for keeping her business running while she's out of commission. Not at all kidding when I say this is something that's weighed heavily on my mind at times. Makes for a thought-provoking read.

Oh! And to end on a light note, we have a coupon code running with the feature. Just type in FEATURE15 at checkout, and you'll receive 15% off of your purchase. The code's only good through April 19th, though! Don't miss out!

Stuff for boys!!

As a mom, it's been frustrating for me that most of the super duper "ohmygoshthat'sSOcute" kids clothes that I've seen have been for girls. I mean, it rocks for my daughter, but not so much for my son. And he's got some fashion sense so, even at four, he's kind of noticed.

When he was a tiny little thing, I didn't trust my pattern-making skills quite as much as I do now. And store bought boys patterns...blah. The pattern books were pretty much filled with exactly the same vest and pajama pants patterns that had been there when I was growing up. Nothing terribly exciting, and nothing that my son was much interested in asking me to make for him.

Enter lounge pants.

At four, my son still wants "soft pants" - cotton or knit pants that are comfortable and allow him plenty of room to move around and run and climb without hindrance. His fashion sense wants them to be cute.

These puppies fit the bill:

They're made from 100% cotton with contrast pocket and cuffs. The pockets are perfectly sized for die-cast metal cars, which turned out to be a huge bonus. they're also lined and reinforced, so they're strong enough to tote around a handful of rocks when that need seizes him. The cuffs are stitched, so they won't get floppy or gather dirt, and are also lined, so the pants still look finished if they need to be rolled to allow for growth. A wide, elastic waistband keeps the pants in place without rolling or biting into his skin. He says they're "really, really comfortable". (And, while it's not so much a concern for us, the roomy seat makes them great for wear with cloth diapers on littler ones.)

After talking him into slowing down long enough to take some pictures, he refused to take them off, so I'm calling these a success!

At the moment, there are two styles available in the Etsy shop.

According to my daughter, the green lounge pants are also awesome for girls. ;)

Mixed Blessings

Mom and I have been working really hard the past few weeks to get everything lined out for the trunk show. It's been awesome watching things come together, and I'm getting really excited by some of the things that we've finished. I've also been stressing quite a bit over the things that I'd wanted to get done that just weren't going to get done in time.

Then, this morning, I got a mixed blessing phone call.

The trunk show has been postponed. It's still going to happen soon, but the date is TBD.

A bit disappointing, perhaps, but I'd be lying if I didn't admit that it's also a little bit of a relief. Now I have time to order additional soap supplies and make a few more quilts and round out the size runs on some of the new pieces that we've made and and and. Honestly, we could probably work for another six months and I still wouldn't feel like we'd done enough, but this *does* allow us to fill in some holes. ;)

I'm also excited to be home on the 3rd. Just after we set the date for the trunk show, my dad made arrangements to come visit...on the 3rd. D'oh. My son couldn't be happier. Although the Henny half of Henny & Ev is his best buddy, he wasn't at all pleased that we were going to miss a day of hanging out with Grandpa.

So, back to the sewing machine for me. ;)

(PS - The dedicated website is still on target and the blog feature is still in place, too, so there's still plenty going on!)

A Very Quick Update

I wish I had some pictures to show of things that are in the works...but I'm afraid that it would just look like a bunch of clutter!

It's been a busy, busy day here. Giveaway goodies went to the post office, I did a whole bunch of research into some possible new items, made two batches of soap, have some supplies ordered, some on-hold projects gathered together again, and a whole load of new items ready to be listed in the store tomorrow (or as quickly as time allows - there's a lot!).

I've been looking over and loving all of the comments from the Giveaway Day entries. And moving forward on some really great ideas! I'm so very excited about taking these next steps with frog loves monkey, and hope you all will be, too. :)

And the Winners are...

Thank you all SO much to everyone who visited the blog (and the shops and the facebook page!) and entered to win the giveaway! 116 entries! Wow!

I especially appreciate the feedback on both the Etsy store and the dedicated webpage. There were some fantastic suggestions made, and some of them will be acted on immediately. ;) It's going to take me a little while to work through all of the comments that were made, but I'll be spending some time blogging and emailing today. :)

Now, on the part you've been waiting for... Winners!

I used Random.org to choose the winners, but I can't figure out how to post the screen shot. So I hope that you can all trust me on this.

Our first winner is #34...Cass, who will be receiving the hippo skirt of her choice. Cass, I'll be email you for specifics. :)

Our second winner is #57...Mama Gone Green, who will be receiving a selection of soaps. I'll email a listing of all available soap flavors and to get your address.

Congratulations to both of you and, again, thank you to everyone who entered the drawing!

Hello, Hello!

It's time, I think, for frog loves monkey to have a blog. I love Etsy and Facebook, but this just seems a little more personal for some of the stuff that seems a little more...chatty?

I'll be writing up some posts as time (and the kids) allow, sharing some stuff that's in the works. Your feedback is always welcome!

If you haven't checked out the shop yet, the dedicated website is down for the time being but the Etsy store is currently open on a limited basis. You can see it here. And for items that aren't appropriate for the Etsy store, there are pictures and descriptions on Facebook. Be sure to "like" the page while you're there!