500 Posts!

Holy moly!  This seems like some kind of milestone worth celebrating, right?  When I started this blog, I really had no idea how long I would keep it up.  I tend to go really hard with things and then just completely lose interest.  But this blog helps me.  It's a bit like therapy and I think I would continue writing and sharing, even if no one ever looked.  I don't think I'll ever have sponsored posts or a ton of followers, but I promise I will always be real and will never take myself too seriously.  I know I do have some readers, or at least that's what my stats tell me, so I want to use this post to thank you for checking in on my little happy space on the internet.  It sometimes still surprises me that anyone other than my grandma has the least bit of interest, but I appreciate it!  I have don't really have a photo to fit the occasion, so here's my face in a giant peach.  See previous statement regarding taking myself seriously!

For the Birds!

I've always loved birds, especially parakeets or budgies, if you prefer.  I remember my dad had one once who I think we called Leroy.  I can recall talking to him and trying so hard to get him to mimic my words.  It never did quite work.  I hadn't thought much about ever having one as a pet, until this summer and my experience with the budgie enclosure at the Virginia Safari Park.  I was obsessed for a bit after that and a friend's photo of her new birds on Instagram has sparked that obsession again. I'm going to do some research before making any decisions.  So for now, this wish list will hold me over.  Oh!  Check out this great blog, if you're a fellow budgie lover!

1/2/3/4/5/6/7

Condolence

I haven't been able to shake this song, since first listening a few weeks ago.  I had never heard of Benjamin Clementine, but a Buzzfeed quiz suggested I listen and who am I to ignore their suggestions?!  There is something so haunting about this song and his lovely voice that after listening for the first time and reading a little about him, I became an instant fan.  Hope you enjoy.

Crafterween

It feels like a very long time since I've done a crafternoon post.  Heidi took a bit of a break hosting and asked for others to take turns with hosting duties.  I've missed a few months and was too busy to host my own, but Heidi returned as host this month and I made sure I could attend.  We did Halloween stencils, on everything from tote bags to tissue box covers, and I think everyone's projects turned out great.  It definitely gave me a new found love of stenciling!  Because it was crafterween, there were lots of treats, mostly baked by Heidi's son, and an assortment of fun costumes.  I went as a sort of grown up Louise Belcher, because I think we have pretty similar personalities and it was a pretty easy last minute costume.  You can see more photos from this month's event here, on Heidi's blog!

 It didn't seem right that Louise would ever be a fan of ironing, so I left my dress a bit wrinkly!  My grandma made my hat and sent me the most hilarious photo of my grandpa modeling it.  Do you see those baked goods in the top photo?!  Delicious!!  And of course Heidi has a Halloween tree!

My finished projects included a small paper mache trinket box, a cardboard shadowbox, and a linen canvas.  I plan on decorating them all further and giving them as gifts to my Halloween loving family members!

That One Time Of Year When I Actually Get Serious

If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you may remember that I organized an Instagram auction last October in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  You probably have also caught on that this is a cause that is of particular importance to me.  My experiences growing up have sort of steered me here and are most definitely why I choose to help people for a living.  In a perfect world, I wouldn't have this job.  There wouldn't be a need for it.  However, the world isn't quite perfect and this cause needs more attention.  I bet you know someone who has experienced domestic violence. Maybe you've even experienced it yourself.  Numbers sometimes vary, especially considering that domestic violence often goes unreported, but around 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men experience abuse in their intimate relationships.  That's pretty astounding!  There is help out there, but small agencies like mine seem to struggle to find the funds to really keep up with the demand.  We rely heavily on donations, both monetary and otherwise, to stay afloat.  This auction is my way of helping the agency as a whole which in turn benefits my clients and our future clients.  I've had some great people message me with donations for the auction, but I'd love to have more help and make this auction even more successful than last year.  I'm aiming for the very end of October, so there's still time to help.  If you'd like to donate an item to be auctioned off, please email me at mollyeallen@gmail.com for more details. Thanks!

Pickin' Pumpkins

We made our annual trek to our favorite pumpkin patch on Sunday.  It's nothing too big or fancy, but the employees are all extra friendly, the pumpkins and produce are inexpensive, and the view from the patch is gorgeous.  It's worth the drive!

Make Every Day A Creepy Day

Sure Halloween is an excuse to pay some extra attention to all the creepy stuff in life, but do we really even need an excuse?!  I say make every day creepy with the items below!

Click the link below to find out where to buy these great items. (I'm not responsible for the poor attempts at background removal in these Polyvore photos, but I doubt mine would look much better!)

Keep it Creepy by molldoll527 

                    

Teenage Dream

I'm a sucker for covers.  I know I've mentioned that previously.  This is a good one!  The Horrible Crowes is one of the side projects of Brian Fallon, singer for Gaslight Anthem.  He has the kind of voice that just conveys emotion so well in every song he sings, like he's lived a million tough lives. This song is originally a really poppy song by Katy Perry, but he makes seem much deeper than an upbeat dance song.  Enjoy!

Stitch Rock 2015

When I got accepted to Stitch Rock, a show all the way in Florida, I figured I could turn it into part of a visit with my brother.  Things didn't quite work out, though.  Instead of a relaxed mini getaway and family visit, it turned into a sort of fast-paced, sleep deprived road trip.  I'm not complaining; I got to spend a whole weekend with my husband and we managed to fit in a few quick stops on the drive home.  It was a long long way to drive for a craft show, though!  We left Friday morning, stopped at a sketchy motel around 2am, and drove to the show on less than four hours of sleep.  I'm certain that caffeine and anxiety were the only things keeping me awake and functioning!

The show itself mostly took place inside an old gymnasium, with some additional booths outside under tents.  It was a pretty building and the surrounding town looked great.  I wish I had taken more photos, but I left my actual camera in the car, so you're left with bad iPhone photos.  You can see some great photos, including some of my stuff here and here.  The first photo in that second link is Amanda, the gal responsible for putting on Stitch Rock and she was absolutely lovely.  I would imagine she is easily the hardest working woman in south Florida and was super sweet!  She actually bought my very favorite Halloween girl.

There were tons of great vendors at the show, the most delicious hot dogs ever, and lots of people shopping.  I have to admit, though, there weren't a ton of people shopping at my booth. I'm not really sure that a lot of the shoppers knew exactly what to make of my space full of doll faces. I heard the word "creepy" so many times and there were lots of odd expressions and hushed whispers. I fully realize my stuff isn't for everyone and I'm okay with that, but I did have a few moments where I felt a little disappointed or insulted.  I'm sure the lack of sleep made me extra sensitive.  I shook it off really quickly, though, and the people who weren't creeped out seemed to really love my work.  There was one terribly sweet young lady who said my booth was her very favorite and this awesome guy who, after really taking in my whole booth, described my doll faces as "fucking bad ass".  He apologized for his choice of words and said he was having trouble thinking of the right thing to say, because my stuff was so great.  I loved that guy!

I nearly left out the best part of the show!  I got to meet some IG friends and fellow vendors, make a few new ones, and briefly catch up with and hug one of my very favorite friends in the whole world. Those things would have made the long drive worth it, even if I hadn't sold a single item!  I got my acceptance email to Handmade Arcade on the way to Florida, so the making madness will be starting all over again soon.  For now, though, I'm glad to be finished with this great show and able to relax and catch my breath for this week!

Craft Show Prep!

I wish I could say that my absence from blogging was because I've been busy traveling through Europe or saving the world, but the reality is that I have been just absolutely consumed with working on things for a craft show.  I know that's not really as exciting as the first two things I mentioned, but there was a lot of work to be done- doll faces to be adorned, vintage reflectors that needed turned into brooches and ornaments, and lots of goodie bags to fill.  As you can see in the last photo, I did have some help.  Now that the show is over, I can get back to updating (until I'm consumed by the next thing) and feeling less stressed about having things made!