Anniversaries, Festivities, and pink Christmas trees!

It has been a whirlwind of activity around here at Ye Olde Button Haus! The last month has been jampacked with so many wonderful events! First of all, there was our anniversary to celebrate! For those of you who don't know, my husband and I got married a year ago on Halloween, at Back to the Grind Cafe. In the last year it has certainly become a home away from home for us, what with all the crafting events we have been involved in there! They were so great during the wedding too! They let us take over the entire shop for most of the day, to transform it for the wedding, and I still get chills thinking about how wonderful it all turned out! Getting married on Halloween not only helps ensure that your husband will never forget your anniversary, (wink wink) but also, that there will almost always be something fun to do that day! As for our first year, we celebrated it by brunching at the Mission Inn, and getting thoroughly tipsy on mimosas in the courtyard. Later, after a recuperative nap, we ventured out to the Queen Mary's Dark Harbor to scare the bejeezus out of ourselves. Nothing says, "Honey, I'm so glad we tied the knot, even one year later!" like running through a maze of zombies on an old ship!  T'was truly a fantastic time! As for anniversary gifts...I know for your first year you are supposed to either give paper, or clocks, but our cousin David, who is a fantabulous photographer, took the most beautiful  photo at our wedding, and I just had to get it made into a painting by one of my favorite artists, Angie Ibarra. I have been a fan of Angie's work ever since my Aunt Griselda clued me into her about six years ago, when she was selling her artwork on eBay. Now,  I know that canvas is technically not paper, but I just couldn't help myself, so I decided to forgo tradition and give my husband a painting for our anniversary and Angie did not disappoint! Her take on our wedding was just so incredible! She managed to incorporate so many aspects of the wedding into the painting, it is destined to become a family heirloom! 

I am pretty sure Mr. Husband liked it almost as much as I liked what he gave me.  Mr. Husband was nontraditionally traditional and actually made me a clock out of a Mexican tin painting of a skeleton couple! So clever, that guy! No wonder I married him!

After the thrill of anniversaries was over, there was still much crafting to be attended to, since it was the week of Dia de los Muertos, ArtWalk and a craft show at the Elk's Lodge!  Cosme of Division 9 Gallery orchestrated a phenomenal event Downtown for Dia de los Muertos! The entire section of Mission Inn Blvd between Orange and Lemon Streets in front of the Museum and Library was just jam packed full of people watching the dancers, or checking out the booths...hopefully next year, Button Button Who! will be among those booths, fingers crossed! As for this year, we had a tiny set up over at Back to the Grind, which was much less heavily trafficked, but there was a lovely mellow vibe that night! A small selection of Frida dolls, Skeleton dolls, and owls are still available at their retail space!

ArtWalk was fabulous, as always! It seemed as though all our friends stopped by to say hello and wish us well, at some point in the evening. It's so nice to have a craft roadie on ArtWalk night to help out setting up and breaking down after the night is done...Mr. Husband is becoming quite the awesome craft roadie! He was on hand  with iced teas, and hot dogs from Relish when it seemed like I was about to perish from hunger. Right now he is working on something to help me display my Christmas merch and the best thing about him, is he works for free! At the Elks Lodge Craft Bazaar, later that week,  he was on hand with breakfast from Jack in the Box for Miss Manda and I...you can get a full recap of our Elk's Lodge adventures over at her place! It was truly a peek into the future to see what may await me if I'm not careful! I too, could be fashioning birdbaths from terracotta pots, or Christmas wreaths from hay...must be ever vigilant to strive for the utmost creative output!

Well,  I don't know about you, but it seems as though the holidays have snuck upon us with a stealthiness usually reserved by old Karate masters about to catch a fly with chopsticks!  I have not gone to bed before 1:00 a.m. all week long, and I have been teaching all week...it has been such an exercise in time management!  Be that as it may, I am super excited about the upcoming festivities, even if it means right now, I am busier than a long tailed cat in a roomful of rocking chairs.

There are SO many fun events coming up!!! Hopefully you can make it out to a couple and check out the new Xmas Stuff we have! I have been up late at night cutting and piecing felted wool and cashmere for our one of a kind Christmas stockings! They are all so festive and colorful, I kinda want to keep them all, but Mr. Husband says there's not room on our mantle for all of them. Here's a little sneaky peak! 

On top of the full size stockings, I am also offering small, ornamental mittens and stockings, which are, oh, shall we say, giftcard sized...just perfect for slipping that last minute giftcard into and making a more presentable...present!  

In addition to the stocking and mitten ornaments, I am making the entire Button, Button, Who! cast of characters, in miniature, perfect for decking out for your tree! So those of you who have been putting off getting your owl fix, can do so for the holidays! I, for one, am going to try and cram my artificial pink tree full of mini owls, just you wait and see!

 Besides owls, we'll have chickadees, whales, cats, Christmas-themed Matryoshkas, and our new Scottie dogs!!! We will still have our old favorites too, for those of you who have been waiting till the holidays to get your Button on...this is the time to do it! We are going to be so busy with events, supplies will definitely not last!!!

Here's a rundown of the Button, Button, Who! Holiday schedule:

11/26/2010 - Thrifty Gifting at Division 9 Gallery (2:00 P.M. - 8:00 P.M.)

12/02/2010 - ArtWalk at Life Arts Building - Benefit for Doctors Without Borders (6:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M.)

12/03/2010 -  UCR Market Day (8:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.)

12/04/2010 - Promenade Elementary School Craft Fair & Pancake Breakfast (8:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M.)

12/05/2010 - Back to the Grind - Art Bazaar (2:00 P.M. - 8:00 P.M.)

12/12/2010 - Tio's Tacos with Division 9 Gallery Trifty Gifting! (3:00 P.M. - 8:oo P.M.)

12/18/2010 - Pomona ArtWalk at PB&J's (6:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M.)

Hopefully we will be able to meet up at one of those events and I can show you what I've been working so hard on! I can't wait!

What's New, Pussycat?

A lot has been going on keeping us busy at the Button Haus! Manda Millar of Mammal Chupie fame hosted Art Bazaar at Back to the Grind and it was smokin'! Well, it was a super hot day, and all our gratitude to all who braved the sweltering heat to drop by and give your props!! I am looking forward to doing another one in November when the weather is a bit cooler!!!Stay tuned for a date. Jet Set with an Edge, September edition was fantastic. Victoria Lacey of House of Flames put on a great event and all the vendors were super supportive! Not to mention, the tacos weren’t bad either!

ArtWalk last Thursday was wonderful! Not only did we get to visit with lots of lovely folks, but since hubby Mark was helping watch the table, I was able to take a little break and mosey on down to Division 9 Gallery and check out my dear friend, Cynthia Huerta’s one woman art show Las Sequelas! If you missed the opening, don't fret! It goes on til October 28th! Such a fantastic show…I couldn’t resist picking up a little something for the Button Haus Gallery!

A word on the Button Haus Gallery…my wonderfully talented aunt Griselda (check out her paintings and her art dolls, they are beautiful!) has been requesting pics and a blog entry fully dedicated to our little townhouse that lives a double life as an art gallery. Soooooo, since I love my auntie so much, be sure to keep an eye out for a future entry all about our house/gallery/reason I will end up on an episode of ”Hoarders: Buried Alive” eventually!

Just a little update of where we will be in the upcoming weeks! Yes…the Etsy shop is still not open yet…because we have been SO busy around town lately! This Friday, October 15^th we will be at the RCC quad for .EDUfest from 4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.! LATE night! There will be music and tons of original artists and vendors, so come on down and say hi!

Sunday, October 24^th we will be participating in the October edition of Jet Set with an Edge…this time we will be in the banquet room of Zacatecas Cafe at 2472 University Ave. in Riverside! This one starts at 9:00 a.m. and goes until 2:00 in the afternoon, some come on down, have lunch or brunch or even breakfast if you are that early of a riser and check out all the cute stuff!

In November, we will be at ArtWalk on the first Thursday as per usual, this time with MORE Fridas in honor of Dia de los Muertos!!! Come on by and check it out!!!

Where does the time go?

Just a tiny update! ArtWalk was great! So many lovely people stopped by and said hi...so much fun to get out into the community and make new friends! Seeing all our old friends is great too!

The Autumnal owls were a hit and can also be found at the retail space at Back to the Grind!

I am working on some new things for the shop which will hopefully be ready for the next two upcoming events.

I apologize to those of you still awaiting our Etsy opening, but since we’ve been so busy with actual live/in-person events, there hasn’t been much time for setting up internets/virtual shop stuff! I will try to get on that soon!

But first we have an event this Sunday, September 19, 2010 at Back to the Grind. Sweet Miss Manda of Mammal Chupie is hosting her Art Bazaar once again, and has invited Button, Button, Who! to run a table. The event is from 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon, until early evening at Back to the Grind at 3575 University Ave Riverside, CA , 92501…hope to see you there!

A week after that, on September 25, 2010, Button, Button, Who! will be manning (or should I say, womanning?) a table at the House of Flames, Jet Set with an Edge event in Norco! This clothing, art, and accessory party is not your typical Tupperware or jean/purse parties. There will be live DJ-ed music and hors d'oeuvres. Event starts at 6:00 and goes til 9:00 at 1992 Paddock Lane, Norco, CA. Come on down!

As for new merchandise, I will be showcasing lots more magnets and new hair clips! Just in time for fall are our felted cashmere button clippies! You’re gonna love them!

Still have lots of cute new Autumn inspired owls and a couple Fridas and Eskeletes left from ArtWalk! Get yours before they’re all gone! Of course I do custom orders, so technically you can still get one…but then you have to wait a little bit and that’s never fun, is it?

Patience is a virtue, right?

Things are getting rolling!!! After much deliberation, procrastination, and just plain old bad time management, I am finally getting this here blog a’goin’! Soon, I will have emailed all my mail list peoples and shortly (hopefully) after that, we’ll kickstart the Etsy shop!!!

But before all that, there has been much to attend to! There was a two week-long substitute teaching assignment which, although needed very much financially, ate up a LOT of creative time that could have been spent "Button-ing"! I have decided that is the verb I have come up with to describe what I do. There is also a new roommate who we are trying to vacate an office full of stuff to make room for. It's amazing how much stuff you accumulate without even realizing and then have no where to put it! There was a birthday (mine) which had to be celebrated yesterday…and it was! Happy 34 years to me! The day was spent eating, and spa-ing, and eating some more…in between all that I received my business cards (yay!), new logo stamp (double yay!) and bought some ribbon to stamp with my new logo to make tags for the next batch of Button, Button, Who! creations which are just itching to be put together! Such a busy time!!! There is a whole new group of Button, Button, Who! friends who needed cutting out, stitching on and the whole Button, Button treatment, of which we are in the middle of!

I am very excited about this next batch of goodies, because since we are nearing autumn, even though you wouldn’t know it by our over 100 degrees weather lately, I have made quite a few autumnal inspired pieces…maybe if I am really with it, I will be able to put up a few sneak peaks! Until then, I will just have to say that if you are into jewel tones, then there’s something for you…and if you are into Dia de los Muertos, there is something for you…and if you just like plain old cuteness, well then, you are in for a treat! But you will have to be patient! Hopefully they will all be ready for next weeks ArtWalk on September 2. I am planning on setting up outside right next to Back to the Grind again on University so that if anybody is looking for us, you won’t have to look very far! Hope to see y’all then!