Lovin' Autumn

So over the last few days, it's become obvious to me (although I really already knew) that I'm an Autumn person. To be fair, I get really excited about Summer too, but at least in Autumn you can be comfortable in the cool weather by throwing a sweater on, while being hot is a problem not as easily solved. So yeah, Autumn. :) I'm enjoying this very much.

I put the dogs in their pejammies last night, which was awfully cute and cozy, and then I made hot buttered rum, which was less cute but also very cozy.

Today I'm running down to Paperish Mess again, to drop off the magnolia slice keychains that I forgot in my bag last time I was there, and I'm looking forward to the walk in this cool weather. Sweatshirts and warm socks and maybe some tights if I'm feeling adventurous.

Magnolia Slice Keychains, available at Paperish Mess and in my Etsy shop

I hope you all have a lovely cool and cozy weekend!

Summertime Sadness

How did Summer slip away so quickly this year? Well, it's still hot outside, but the feeling of Summer has definitely left, and while I'm not ready to don my scarves and sip my warm drinks yet, its about time I get into the mindset that Autumn is upon me.

I've been having a bit of a hard time lately, a little bit of homesickness mixed with general restlessness and a tad of "is this all there is", punctuated by moments of absolutely wonderful beauty in the most unexpected places -- it's keeping me on my toes, to say the least.

Funny that, as things pick up at work, it's paralleled by things picking up for my lil' jewelry business -- things are going to be inordinately busy, soon, but maybe I need that to snap myself out of this little funk I'm trying to get into?

The studio will be open this Friday, for First Friday at the Flat Iron Arts Building, and I'm eager to see how my little rearrange of the space will go over. I moved the whole "living room" into another room, and the workspace into the studio where the couch/tv/bookshelves used to be. I'm hoping that in the future, this will really help with having more space for different artists to show their work (if they're interested) in the gallery, and it will also give me more space for when I eventually launch my other project (still top secret, of course).

The new living space (complete with napping dog) -- I've cleaned it up a bit since taking this shot, and the couch is covered in plaid blankets to make me feel like I'm living in a cozy cabin in Wyoming, or something like that.

The funny this is that my little rearrangement has made my living space so completely cozy and lovely, that I'm a lot less motivated to actually go into the other room and work on things in there... so hopefully at some point, having the studio open will kick me into gear.

So on that note, I have to leave my little cozy space to go to work, but hopefully some of you will be able to drop by this Friday, and I'll be happy to show off all the work I've been doing in here. I'll be dropping off more necklaces at Paperish Mess towards the middle of next week, so if you can't catch me here at the studio, you can definitely find my most popular pieces in stock at their sweet little shop.

Slow Summer

Summer, the double-edged sword -- it means warm weather, long bike rides, sitting lazily in the Lake, but it also means slower sales, and really expensive markets that I can't necessarily afford. Last year I really went all-out, doing a market practically every weekend, and in the end it was really tiring, and I still just barely scratched by until the pickup in sales pre-Christmas. This year I've only done a handful of markets, opting instead to try to sell my baseball pieces outside of Wrigley Field (which really means sitting with my friends in the sunshine), keeping up with a few small shops that sell my jewelry, and working my hours at Ragstock for fill-in money. It's unfortunate though that Summer, full of fun stuff to do, ends up being the lean time, and I make the majority of my income in the Winter when I want nothing more than to stay inside.

That being said... I really want to go camping right now, but in Chicago, even camping takes more money than I'm willing to spend -- gas, food, renting a camping spot. It's a far cry from when I lived in Virginia, and I could drive half an hour down the Coal Road to a great spot for hiking, swimming, and (free!) camping. I guess you could also say I'm a little homesick these days.

I've been having a lot of fun this past week, riding my bike a lot more, and doing things I would normally either put off, or work through, but it doesn't take away the occasional longing for an open red-dirt road, or a mountain to climb, or a swimming hole.

Here are some of my favorite pieces for this Summer, and I'll raise my glass in the hope that y'all are enjoying these hot, sunny days!

Happy Pride!
Gay Pride Necklace

Reminds me of home.
Magnolia Wood Keychain

Colorful and Pretty
Floating Lace Wall Hanging (Dream Catcher)

Kind of a big deal...

You guys, I am so excited about this. I don't even know how to handle myself. But... but... my Padlock Necklace was featured in the July issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine!!

This isn't even that great of a picture, because I'm too excited, and it's terribly dark in here. But I just had to say it -- I'm so excited!! :)

Long Time Comin'

Has it seriously been over a month since my last post!? Well, that just goes to show you how much I stink at doing more than one thing at a time.

I've been working my job, and tend to want to immediately go to sleep when I go home (on the couch, with bad TV in the background). Now that the weather is finally warming up, I'm hoping I'll stop being so apathetic, and I'll actually get out an enjoy my free days.

Speaking of free days -- I've got a few of them ahead of me, including tomorrow (Memorial Day), so the plan is to set up a small table outside of the Flat Iron Arts Building with a few of my City Map necklaces. That also means that, yes, I'm awake at 12:20am, hoping that a few more Chicago Map pieces will dry by morning (thank goodness for humidity).

It sounds like a nice way to get a little tan, and maybe sell a few necklaces (but mostly get a little tan).

If you'll be in the Chicago area, the building is located at 1579 N. Milwaukee Avenue, so stop by in between your shopping and beer hopping (there's a lot of that to be had in the neighborhood).

I hope everyone enjoys the Memorial Day weekend!

A Great Start to the Week

When I woke up this morning, it was 27-degrees... that's not a very good start to the first full week of Spring, now is it? Well, I walked the dogs on the sunny side of the street, so it wasn't so bad.

Follow Ike & Al on Instagram!

Ready for breakfast!

I always feed them a small wet food breakfast when they come in from their morning walk, so I thought this morning (afternoon, really) would be a great one for me to have a nice breakfast, too.

I started with a hot cup of coffee, which is something I haven't made in a long while. In fact, I haven't even had a coffee to drink since... before the end of January? I tried to water it down a little, so the caffeine wouldn't overwhelm me.

My breakfast comfort food is chilaquiles, and now that I'm eating eggs again, I decided to make my chilaquiles with fried eggs instead of scrambled. I've always worried that there would be some gross texture things going on, what with the combination of egg yolk and sour cream, but it turns out it was delicious! I'm talking, the most delicious chilaquiles I've ever eaten, hands down.

This cast iron pan is one of the lights of my life. It cooks everything so evenly, and it's easily "washed" with a quick paper towel wipe-down.

I finally found a carton of eggs that I'm not grossed out by.  Phil's Fresh Eggs are certified humane, tasty, and affordable -- hooray!

A gorgeous plate of food.

I made my own salsa, but started before I realized we were out of onions, so it only had pablano pepper, Kumato tomato, garlic, black beans, cilantro, and a little salt. I couldn't believe how tasty it was, even without the onion! This might be my new go-to salsa recipe.

I hope y'all are having a nice start to the week, despite the still-cold temperatures. Just hang in there. :)

Spring Fling? A Girl Can Dream...

So we might be above freezing here in Chicago, which is far better than the alternative, but it's still way too cold. We're all getting frustrated... Who am I kidding? We've been frustrated for a while. But still, thinking warm thoughts has to do something... right?

Aaah, memories of sunshine and the beach...

I'm trying to do my part here, and I think using the word "spring" will help, so I'm offering free shipping on any purchases from my Etsy shop ($15 or more) until the end of March if you use the coupon code: springfling2014

I have so many pieces that are perfect for Spring, so we'll just call this smart planning for when the weather matches up to our thoughts.

Blue Bird Cage Necklace

Pink Tassel Necklace

Gold Padlock Necklace

Bright Pink Dream Catcher

Of course, the coupon code will work for any item, including custom map or photo pieces, state charm necklaces, baseball pieces... anything over $15!

Happy shopping, folks, and here's to Spring!

Tassel Time

The tassels have arrived! I was so excited when I ordered these, and was amused that while watching Downton Abbey that night I noticed that nearly every woman was wearing some form of a tassel necklace. Funny how that works, huh?

I'm putting the first few together pretty simply -- just a tassel on a necklace chain -- but I'm hoping to also use them in other designs as well.

You can find all of the color variations of the tassel necklace on my website thebigcitybumpkin.com

or in my Etsy shop!

Giveaway -- Randolph Street Market 2014 Season Pass

It's that time, again! If you live in or around Chicago, you've probably been to the market before, and know how awesome it is -- vintage goods, an indie market, a fancy foods market, and all kinds of fun and revelry. If you haven't been to the market yet, this is the perfect time to visit! In the Summer it's held both inside (air-conditioned) and outside, and also includes a lot of great food trucks and vendors.

I'll be vending at the Randolph Street Market for the first time of the season on
the weekend of April 26-27, and I'm excited to be able to give one lucky follower a season pass!

It includes admission for TWO to all 2014 Randolph Street Market events including off season and regular season markets & other special events. You can visit

randolphstreetmarket.com

for more show dates and times.

The contest runs from March 6th until March 13th.

Enter below, and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My New Favorite Necklace

Funny story (or at least I think so): When I was around 16- or 17-years-old, I was dead into punk. One of my favorite movies at the time was Sid & Nancy. If you've seen it, you maybe remember the scene where Nancy bolts a chain with a padlock around Sid's neck. No key, just a chain and a padlock that wasn't about to come off any time soon. I loved it, and of course immediately bolted a padlock around my own neck. It took the wisdom of my Mom to point out that if I were to be stung by a bee (I'm minimally allergic), that my neck would swell up, and I would most likely be choked to death by this fashion statement of mine, which I couldn't remove. After a bit of bribery, my Dad took me to the Charlottesville Fire Department and, much to my embarrassment, had them use bolt cutters to remove it. He did compensate me with a much more delicate necklace from (the now defunct, but once awesome shop) Coyote, and launched me into my goth phase...

So I thought it would be cool to do an updated take on the padlock necklace. One that could be removed, of course.

Gold Chain Padlock Necklace

I don't want to toot my own horn too much here, but I am obsessed with this necklace. I wear it every day! It's light, even though the gold chain is thick and bold, and it looks great with everything. I have no doubt that it will become the favorite necklace of anyone who purchases it, too.

Gold Chain Padlock Necklace

If you have worrywart parents (but they're probably right), it can be easily removed with the lobster clasp, so no need to be concerned about bee stings or snake bites or whatever else might cause you to swell up like a balloon. What a relief, eh?

It is, of course, available through my website and Etsy shop. If you're going to be out and about this weekend, I'll also have them available in my studio this Friday for First Friday at the Flat Iron Building.

I'm going to spend the day working on a few different things, including more MLB cuff links. I bought a few small plants for office, and while they are tiny, they seem to be making a big enough impact to get me away from working on the couch all day. A huge cold window seems warmer when there's a plant hanging in it.

I hope all of you are staying warm out there. This winter is almost over... isn't it?

Bird Cage Necklace

Just a quick post about a new piece I listed yesterday, and it's perfect for Spring (if Spring is ever really going to arrive).

Blue Birdcage on White & Gold Rosary Chain

These little blue bird cages are so whimsical and sweet, and my favorite thing about them is that the little door can be opened and closed, and there is a tiny swing on the inside.

The chain is a vintage pearly white bead and gold rosary chain, with a small silver skeleton key charm attached, just because it makes it even sweeter.

Right now I only have one of these available, because the rosary chain is hard to come by, but I will be able to make a limited amount of them. Let me know if you're interested in buying more than just one (great for a bridesmaid party, for example), and I can let you know how many would be available.

These really have me looking forward to Spring, but who am I kidding... I've been looking forward to Spring for at least a month and a half, now. ;)

You can find these pieces in my Etsy shop, save them on Wanelo, and now you can also view and purchase them (as well as all of my other pieces) through my website at www.thebigcitybumpkin.com

New Website

I finally took the initiative to design a full website! It's going to make it a lot easier for people to connect with me through all of my social media outlets, including this blog, and to shop my products online through a variety of stores where I'm featured.

thebigcitybumpkin.com

Today is big Al's first vet appointment, so we're busy getting ready for that (a nice long walk, and soon a bath to make sure he's smelling fresh, which he so often is not). I'm eager to see what the vet has to say about helping him gain weight, and how I can help him with his fear of people -- he's comfortable around us now, but still gets very nervous when he has to walk on a busy sidewalk.

I've also got some awesome new necklaces in the works. I can't wait to post about them, I think they're going to do really well. I'm wearing mine right now, and I love it. Here's a sneak peek, better pictures and Etsy listings are on their way!

I also have some more feminine Spring pieces planned. I'm trying to wait until the weather is more appropriate for Spring jewelry, but seeing as that could be a while in my section of the country, I think I'll just start putting them out there this week or next week.

Let it snow, let it snow

While I'm just about at my capacity for bitter cold weather this season, it seems a lot nicer when it's at least snowing.

I'm sure everyone who has to commute to work by car/bus/train/walking this morning would disagree with me... this is when I count my blessings, that I get to stay at home and just enjoy it.

It's not over yet, though... 7-inches and counting, and we're helping a friend move to his new apartment today! There, see? It's not all smelling the roses over here, after all. ;)

So I've got a few new venues for my jewelry in the works, and the first one is the flash sale website Groopdealz. 20 variations of my city map necklaces are going up for a deeply discounted sale on the main page this Friday, so now is a great time to sign up, and snag them for a fantastic price.

I'm a quick shipper, so if you're thinking about a City Map Necklace as a gift, they should make it in time for Valentine's Day!

Skeleton Key Necklaces

Just a quick post to let y'all know that I have eight new Skelton Key Necklaces listed in my Etsy shop!

Skeleton Key Necklaces

I've always been fascinated with skeleton keys, and although the decorative ones are very pretty, I think my favorite key is the most simple one (on the far left in the picture above).

If you want to go all out, just wear ALL of them!

Skeleton Key Necklaces

I have a few more designs to list, but I'm going to be incorporating them into more complex necklaces. Hopefully they'll be up this month (still waiting on a few supplies to arrive).

Post-xmas Post -- I Survived!

Oh my goodness, the month leading up to Christmas/Xmas/Present Day is always complete chaos over here. It's the kind of chaos I like, though -- order after order after order rolling in, spending all day packaging and taping and shipping bag-fulls of jewelry to people. Once January hits, though, it slows down tremendously, almost to a grinding halt, and it's hard to figure out how to fill my days without becoming entirely stagnant.

I'll admit it though -- many a day has been spent in bed for way too long, only to transfer to the couch, wrapped in my warmest blanket, sipping on Baileys and watching movies.

The kids don't mind lazy days.

I did have a little birthday thing at the end of the month, and I took that day to do something terribly old-folk -- I went to IKEA, and I bought curtains. Oh, the excitement! But the curtains do look nice...

New Years Eve was spent bowling in the afternoon, and at a Chicago Bulls game that evening. For all of my complaining about hating basketball, it was completely different in person. I didn't just tolerate it, I actually enjoyed it! It really wasn't a good game... but still, I'd like to go back, it was a lot more fun than I expected it to be.

We've had a snow event, if you will, over the last few days, so that left me feeling nice and cozy, roasting butternut squash and finding out that vegan French toast might be yummier than it's eggy counterpart. Knowledge is power, folks. Delicious power.

We got at least 1/2 inch inside, and a few more outside.

So I'm sure at some point I'll have to unwrap myself from the blankets and get off the couch, but I'm going to enjoy this as long as I possibly can. This is, after all, one of the pleasures of working from home! Three cheers for small business!

Happy New Year, birds & blokes!

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Aah... Autumn...  I love Autumn.  It's been a mixture of unseasonably warm and dropping temperatures that leave a lot of us Chicagoans shocked (and wearing puffy coats? really?), but Autumn is finally here, pumpkin-flavored everything, plaid and sweaters and thick socks, and it's glorious.  I LOVE this time of the year!

Autumn also means it's time for me to make my annual trek to Virginia to visit family, which actually didn't even happen last year.  I can't believe it's been two years since I've seen the rolling Blue Ridge Mountains, and the red dirt roads, and the cars that drive slowly and give each other the acknowledgement wave as they pass on a tree-lined road.

But the point is... because I've been excited about this trip, and because I've been working harder to pay for it, I've been seriously slacking over here in blog-world.  So I'll give you all of the quick updates I can, and get out of here quickly, so that by the next post I can pretend like I never missed a beat.

I started making dream catchers, and other wall-hangings and home decor items:

Lace & Sticks Bohemian Dream Catcher

Black Bohemian Dream Catcher Wall Decor

It's fun to be working on something new!

I also started working on some coin rings, but I don't know if I'm really getting what I want out of them.  My next project is going to involve silver rings, but everything is an experiment, so I don't know long I'll have to practice before I'll be happy enough with them to start listing them.

I also rearranged the working half of the studio, to make a better space for my office/workspace (next to the window, finally!), and to make a nice space for the dining table, and my high hopes for future spaghetti dinners with friends.

This Sunday I did the last Chicago Flea MKT of the season -- it was rather quiet, but I'll take quality over quantity any day.  I'm really looking forward to this market next year -- not just because it's only a few blocks from my studio, but because the people who shop and the other vendors at this one are fantastic, and I love being that close to the awesome food trucks.

So I'll let you know how my attempts with making silver rings go for sure, even if it's just a "Pinterest fail" moment, and I hope you're looking forward to pictures from my lovely home state of Virginia as much as I'm looking forward to taking them.

Sweet Home

I've lived in Chicago for five years now, but I still have those "I can't believe I'm here" moments.  It probably helps that I don't go out that often, so when I do, when I'm downtown at night and the buildings are all lit up, it still has a magical feeling to it all.

I've been having a lot of those moments this week, with the Chicago Dancing Festival going on.  On Tuesday I attended the opening night performance, and saw the Chicago Human Rhythm Project, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Brooklyn Mack and Tamako Miyazaki, Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, Brian Brooks Moving Company, and the Joffrey Ballet.  Front row, dead center.  I could hear the dancers breathing, and their shoes squeaking on the floor.  I learned that I'm not the only person who cries at these sort of things, thank goodness.

Tonight I'm going to the performances at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, and I'll see Ensemble Espanol Spanish Dance Theatre, and more performances by the Joffrey Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and Lar Lubovitch Dance Company.

The festival continues through Friday and Saturday, but I wasn't able to get tickets for the event tomorrow, so I'll be waiting patiently in the stand-by line.  Saturday the performances are all FREE and open to the public, in Millennium Park, so if you're in the Chicago area, you should definitely go!!

I've also got Randolph Street Market again this weekend, so needless to say I'm going to be busy, and running on a tight schedule, if I'm going to do everything I want to do.

I'll be in the same spot as last time, so come by and say Hi!  I'll have a few new pieces with me, including vintage international map necklaces and gold-glitter rings (for only $5!!), and I finally re-stocked the Chicago map necklaces, so I'll be ready to roll with those.

If you've never been to the market, or even if you're an old regular, I have two season passes still up for grabs.  There are only two more markets this season (August, and September), so if you're interested in going, now is your chance!  Both passes are good for admission to the remaining markets this season, for two people, for both days.  One of the passes includes free valet parking!  The other does not include the free valet parking, but is still good for shopping to your heart's content.

If you're interested in the season pass WITH free valet parking, enter here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you don't have a car, and want the season pass WITHOUT free parking, enter here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck, and I'll see y'all at the market!!