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

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).

Puppy Cut

Not much to report over here... I've got some exciting new jewelry pieces on the horizon, but I'm still waiting for all of my supplies to arrive.

In the meantime, I brought little man to get a haircut. He looks like a completely different dog!

Look at those perky little ears!

Needless to say, he found the entire process to be exhausting, and after eating and drinking, he's spent the rest of the evening asleep on the couch.

zzzz...

Hopefully I'll be getting those supplies soon, and I'll be able to add my new pieces to my Etsy shop before Valentine's Day (fingers crossed). They're going to be worth the wait!

Puppies and Kittens (sort of)

I'm still a little nervous even saying this out loud, but I think we're looking for a companion for our dog, Ike. It started with me seeing a random pet store the other day with "Puppies!" on the sign, so I thought it would be fun to go see them. Then I went back to Chicago and saw a few more. We thought about it a little bit more, talked it over, and thought it would be a good idea to bring Ike to meet some of them, just to see how he reacted. We were hoping that being around these spritely little puppies would make him a little bit more active...

Ike

As it turns out, Ike is really annoyed by puppies. They jump all over him, and steal his chewies, and generally just make a lot of fuss about nothing (as far as he can tell). So now we're looking at older dogs, specific breeds, and this afternoon I came upon the cutest little Shih Tzu I've seen in a long time.

So he's going to be my Valentine's Day date -- on February 14th we're going to visit him (after he gets out of the medical center being treated for heart worms, and after the awful neutering which I hope he never associates with me). We're bringing Ike with us, and just crossing our fingers that they like each other, and want to be pals. I feel like Ike really deserves a buddy, someone in the pack who speaks his language, and I think Olivia would enjoy having a dog around who is a bit more interested in her than Ike is (which is not at all).

Olivia

In the meantime... we're all freezing over here. Apparently it's warmed up outside, but the heater in the studio hasn't turned on once since last night, so it feels like I'm living in an ice castle right now. I've got the portable heater running in here, and it's registering the temperature around it as 62-degrees. That temperature goes down at least 10-degrees once you're more than 18 inches away from the portable heater, I'm sure.

It looks warm, but I'm not standing anywhere near these drafty windows today!

I hope you're all staying warm out there, or in there for that matter. It seems like a great day to curl up with a cup of hot cocoa and watch old movies -- the old movies I can do, unfortunately my eating/drinking clean kick doesn't really allow for hot cocoa. Well, I'll just curl up with a nice glass of mean green juice, then. ;)

Want Need Love

Has everyone out there already discovered Wanelo (for Want Need Love)? Am I late to the party, again? If you haven't, you really need to check it out!

Find me on Wanelo

It's similar to Pinterest, but entirely for shopping. Shopping made social, because if you sign up through Facebook, your friends will be able to see what you're saving (on Wanelo, if you like something you "save" it), which comes in especially handy if you're making a "Things I would like as gifts" list. I'm hoping this will be very helpful for my 'fella, who seems to feel pretty helpless when it comes to picking something out for me.

You can also comment on items and tag your friends, if you think it's something they would be interested in.

You can follow your favorite stores, not only to see their new products, but also products that they like or that fit in with their aesthetic.

Needless to say, I'm addicted.

Click on the picture above if your interested in following me. I just joined yesterday, but I'm already thinking this website is going to be my new landing spot on the internet.

Romantic Bohemian Dreamcatcher

I know, I know, it's 0-degrees outside, but I'm still holding out hope that this foreign concept of warmth still exists, and might actually be something I experience for myself in the near future. Of course, this is Chicago... so it could be the middle of June before we get to take our sweaters off. I saw a man on the news last night, he had just moved here from California, and though he bemoaned the Winter weather, he said hopefully "But we've only got two months until Spring... one month, maybe..." Bless his heart, he has no idea.

Still, we must march on, assuming that the seasons will change and Spring will arrive, no matter how far away that seems right now.

I'm starting to work on my Spring dream catchers. Most of these pieces would be beautiful hung on your wall at any time of the year, but there's something especially hopeful about the last one I made.

Bright Pink Floral Dreamcatcher, available in my Etsy shop

Something about the colors, the floral pattern, it's just... insistent. Warmer days are coming, I promise.

The fabric on this one is especially nice -- it's from a Ralph Lauren skirt! It's a medium sized dreamcatcher, but once it's hung on the wall it really packs it's punch -- bright, happy, fresh, and oh so hopeful. It won't be long now... right?

Sometimes the USPS is Just... Yucky

The terribly cold weather has been a thing of the past (well, sort of) for at least a week now, yet the USPS continues to use it as an excuse for slow delivery times. I might have mentioned this a couple times on my Facebook page. So I made a coupon code for free shipping for all of my customers through tomorrow, as an apology for anyone who has had to wait to receive anything I've shipped out. 

I feel your pain, as some of my supplies have taken TWO WEEKS to arrive in the mail at my studio. Unfortunately, even though the cold snap seemed to be temporarily over, I know they're still taking entirely too long to deliver to some areas of the United States, so I made another coupon code for free First Class shipping that will be good through next Saturday. I know this doesn't really help too much when you're eagerly awaiting the arrival of something you've ordered, but I hope it works as a small apology.

Through next Saturday, you can use the code: USPSNONSENSE000 on anything purchased in my Etsy shop and shipped domestically for free First Class shipping, and don't be shy about it. It makes me smile when people use coupon codes, and hopefully everyone won't experience the same slow delivery times that we here in the Midwest have had to deal with. Thank you to everyone who has been patient about it, and to those of you who aren't experiencing any problems (bless you, West coasters) you get the enjoy the benefits, anyway. :)

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!

Little Dioramas

Today I finally started working on the little skeleton dioramas I've been talking about for-ev-er.  My little sunbathing beauty is resting on her towel on the shore, while her friend (not yet dried, or painted) wades in the water.  I added a bright sun, and a fluffy cloud, but I still have a LOT of work to do on them before they're anywhere near finished.  Still, progress is progress.

I also made and painted a coffin (with an opening and closing lid!), and a skeleton to go inside of it.  He's also drying and awaiting paint...

It's nice to have these little things to work on once I've finished my shipping insanity for the day, and I really like that I can get super-crazy-detailed about them, if I want to.  I'm going to add actual sand and shells from Lake Michigan to the sunbathing scene, and I want to fill the coffin with a multitude of both dried and painted flowers.

When I was a kid, I used to create little dioramas in our plastic laundry baskets.  I would hang them from the staircase, sideways, and get REALLY upset when my parents took them down.  I had a hard time understanding how they could be ignorant to my fabulous ability to create miniature worlds (sarcasm!), and how dare they think the house looked better without laundry basket dioramas hanging from the stairs!?  Really, the audacity...

But now I'm a grown up, and I can do whatever I want.  :)

June -- upcoming shows

Although I'm sure this isn't an absolutely final list, here are the places you can find me out and about in Chicago this month!

Sunday June 16, 9am-5pm; $3

Vintage Garage Chicago

Wednesday June 19, 7:30pm-12m; $5 benefits the Awakening Center in Chicago

Phoenix Rising Presents: Gynaeceum

Sunday June 23, 2pm-10pm; $6

Artopia Chicago Fest

Saturday & Sunday June 29-30, 10am-5pm daily; $3-25 (pricing levels vary)

Randolph Street Market

All of the links lead to Facebook events that I've created for these festivals and shows, click through for more info!  Hopefully I'll see some of you there.  I try to have unique items when I go to events, something that might not have shown up in my Etsy shop yet, so come out and get ahead of everyone else!

New Pieces, Upcoming Shows, and Non-stop Action!

I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend!

Things are hoppin' around the studio (and around the city) these days!  Saturday and Sunday I set up shop at the Randolph Street Market for the first time.  I'm ashamed to say that I had never even visited as a customer, but now I really wish I had -- one booth was even selling a real human skeleton!!

Oh yeah, and he's even got a name.  I had half a mind to put this guy up next to my table, wearing my necklaces... but alas, he was a little out of the budget for me.

I was in the lower hall, which was a little slower than outside or the ballroom, but things got pretty busy around 1pm each day.

I haven't decided yet about next month, but I think it would be fun to try my luck outside!  Especially because I (finally) ordered my festival canopy tent today, and I'm sure I'll want to show it off.

I premiered my terrarium-style pieces this weekend, and they were a hit!

I've just started listing them in my Etsy shop, you can see them in the Nature Girl // section HERE

This weekend, you can find me at the

Off The Beaten Path SOHO market on Saturday, and the

Chicago Flea MKT on Sunday!

You can always make appointments with me in my studio by emailing me at

vanessa @ thebigcitybumpkin.com

and of course there's a good chance you'll catch me on Waveland and Kenmore, outside of Wrigley Field on game days.