It's Friday, already?

The week sort of flew by, with Canada Day being on Tuesday. And I took a pretty long blog break, without meaning to, but life got in the way of blogging. Life being spending time with the kitties and Matt, and working on shop stuff.

The Kid Icarus Craft Sale last Sunday was certainly not a big moneymaker for me, but on the positive side, I met some new crafty and friendly people, including one that I traded with, and another who I bought stuff from. I was looking to get a new wallet and since red is my favourite colour, I happily traded some of my kitty items for the one below.

Isn't the interior lovely? I forgot to get the designer's business card, but luckily her name is in the wallet in case I ever want anything else from her.

And even though I shouldn't be spending money on unnecessary things, I couldn't resist these cuties. They are silkscreened onto organic cotton on both sides, which makes them all the cuter! Made in Toronto, by one savvy mom.



I also spied a fellow etsian as well as three Idol hopefuls out and about enjoying Pedestrian Sunday in Kensington Market.

Raining Cats

After a fitful night of sleep - I blame Dex, pictured above - it's nice to wake up and read something pleasant about yourself. Especially after being a bit unpleasant to said sleep disturber. I think he was acting up because of the rain, which is quite horrible today.

"It's a good day to stay inside", as Matt just said but unfortunately (or fortunately) I have to make a trip to the post office. He'll have to go in to work soon too, though a bit later than usual. It's moving day for them.

One good thing about not sleeping that well: I was busy brainstorming new illustration ideas, so look for new art in the shop in the next few weeks.

Catching Up

I'm getting back into the swing of things here, now that the One of a Kind Spring Show is over. An awesome fellow clothing designer asked me to help her out for the 5-day event and seeing as how I had not been to a show in ages, I thought it would be a great chance to see all the great stuff they have there. Plus, the extra cash didn't hurt.

The first day was alright though there were a few issues with the lighting in our booth. Luckily those issues were resolved and the rest of the day went smoothly. It wasn't too too busy since the show started on a Thursday...

Friday was MAYHEM though. I wish I had a picture to show how busy it was, not only at our booth, but pretty much in all the aisles. Photos were generally not allowed though, plus I didn't have much time to eat or sit down, let alone take a picture that day. I think it was the best sales day ever for a lot of the designers who are a part of the Collective. This is kind of how I felt for much of the day I was there:


A bit frazzled to say the least.

But after Friday, things were pretty much a breeze the rest of the show. I was able to trade for these two cute cups and saucers by ketto design who are from Montreal.

I'd been longing for some more generous sized cups for tea and hot chocolate for some time now and had picked up another piece by them years ago, at the first One of a Kind show I went to. So these were purrfect!

Candice was also gracious enough to give me one of her beautiful new tops (no picture as of yet as it is in need of washing) and a pair of her rather famous undies. It's very true, they ARE "super cute and seriously comfortable!" I had bought Matt a few of these before but had never treated myself. The undies were such a show-stopper that they even managed to get on tv. You can catch a glimpse of me too in the background in the first few seconds of the clip.

Other things of note during the show:
- I met one of my blog readers though I didn't get her name. Sorry (if you're reading this). I guess I was surprised to find out that other people besides a few friends and family read this. I feel like a relative newbie in the blog world and am flattered to know that I do have a readership too. There are some great blogs out there, so thank you to anyone who takes the time to read mine :)

- I also ran into a college peer and chatted for a bit about what's been going on since then. Ah, the college days. Feels like only yesterday, but at the same time it doesn't. How time flies.

And speaking of which, I best get a start on catching up with work. I'll finish the post with a photo of Suki and Dex from earlier today:

A Fresh Start!

Hello! I've started a new blog. With a new year, I'm trying new things and while I liked my old blog, it doesn't offer as many possibilities as I would like. I love all the features you can add in this blog format, like the etsy mini, links to other sites and lots more. If you could do that in livejournal, I never figured it out.

This blog will be devoted to Cathy's Sweet Shop whether it's new items added to my shop, new things in the works, special promos, etc. I will of course intersperse details about my ever-exciting life when I get the chance... life with our cats and yummy food and the latest movies we've watched. You know, THAT exciting life :) Plus, whatever tickles my fancy at the moment. There are so many great blogs out there and amazing creations by other indie artists and designers that inspire me that it's about time I start writing about them.

These days I divide my time between etsying, finding new retailers and restocking current ones, painting portraits and coming up with new ideas for things to make and sell. I wish there was more time in the day to do everything I want to do, but I also do my best to spend time with loved ones. It's tough running a business solo, but I know I have to be thankful that I am able to do what I love to do for now while Matt works his buns off outside of the home. Hopefully I will be able to grow my business enough this year, so I'm able to hire employees soon. That would make me one spoiled kitty.



Saturday, I move into Fresh Baked Goods in Toronto's Kensington Market. For those of you in Toronto, please pop on by. I will be working Mondays at the store and I will have new things available for sale.