photo holder

I've been on the hunt for an instax photo album since I got my fun little camera last Christmas. I am surprised that I still cannot find one. SO, I purchased a cute binder, and some sleeves that hold baseball cards. And diggy-doo, my very own instax photo album:

snow day

What a fabulous Christmas weekend! A TON of family fun, a lot of snow-day relaxing, some kitchen creations, and plenty of puppy playtime.

homemade holiday

It is almost Christmas!! I spent a lot of time making some gifts this year...
I baked a couple of batches of blueberry oatmeal cookies. YUM. I am going to try cranberry almond next.


I made some aprons for a couple of gal friends too (and one for me). I used the same pattern as my last attempt, but did the half version. It was much easier. I am getting much more comfortable with the machine and gaining a broader understanding of sewing. Hooray!
Next sewing projects: yoga bag, and more jewelry pouches.

one

two

three!

Lowell and Louise have been on the road a lot this Fall, so our etsy shop is looking a little sad. We have new designs and new product though! We will be replenishing our stock and hopefully getting the shop looking good again after the new year.

hard at work:

thanks part 2

Last weekend we went to Charleston to visit Sabrina and participate in the Lowcountry Artist Market. It was fabulous!! A job well done by Kristen and the Music Farm. We'd definitely like to be a part of that again. I sold out of bracelets, and only have 2 jewelry pouches left. We also handed out over 100 business cards. What a great event to get our name out there. Now I need to stock back up on supplies, and get busy creating! It is so interesting to me that the crowds can be so different. Davids product did slightly better in Durham, and my jewelry did miles better in Charleston. Thank you to all the folks in Charleston who came out to the event, and we look forward to seeing you again soon!

PS- an UNthanks to the police dept who gave us a parking ticket and tried to give a second ticket while we were unloading/loading our stuff... clearly in a loading zone (not a no parking zone), I was standing with the car, and the flashers were on. grrrrr.

thanks!

Thank you to all the friends and family that came out to the craft fair yesterday!
We'll be doing it again next weekend in Charleston SC. Wish us luck! Then we'll be back at home cranking out the new designs to put on etsy.

surprise inside

I have always been attracted to the purses and handbags that are plain/neutral on the outside, but have a fun patterned fabric on the inside. Its like a visual treat each time you open the bag.

Continuing with all the sewing I've been doing, I decided to make some zippy pouches. Neutral and kind of generic on the outside... then BAM! Pretty and colorful fabric on the inside! I used scraps from the apron project, and finds from the Scrap Exchange.

bear 2.0

I made a bear suit! I had made one several years ago, and this go-round was much easier now that I have more experience using patterns. David has a Halloween costume now, and for many years to come. This thing is awesome.

jackpot

David has a coworker named Sarah. She is great. She brought in and shared some of her Grandmother's old costume jewelry. It was SO FUN to look through 2 giant bins of fun & interesting necklaces.

I was allowed to keep a few things for myself...

Right after I acquired these pieces I saw THIS online. Interesting.

And now I am inspired to make new stuff!!


Come by and see Lowell and Louise! Live and in person!! Buy stuff from us!!
Craft Fairs!

We now accept credit cards in person too! Check out this nifty lil' square! We'll use it with the iphone or ipad. SOO cool.

big picture

We have this big blank wall. It is along the stairs at the front of the house, above the door. There is one lonely sconce, but otherwise it is completely blank. We couldn't decide how to dress it.... a mural? a giant photograph or poster? a bight color painted all over? a long tapestry or banner?

While cleaning out the office, we discovered several blank canvases. I suggested a collaboration piece to cover several canvases. We decided on printing a giant photo, and affixing it to these arranged canvases.



Ta-da!!

And while we are on the topic of before & after... I recovered my desk chair with leftover fabric from Mary's apron:

busy bees

Things have been quite busy in the L&L house...

We have been designing, preparing, stocking, organizing. New stuff coming soon!! Nothing for etsy yet, but if you want a sneak peek come visit us during craft fair season! Get your holiday shopping done early!

We will be in downtown Durham NC for Troika Music Festival!
Visit us on November 6 in the Trotter Building from 1pm to 5pm. Shop and rock out AT THE SAME TIME!

We will be in Charleston SC for the Lowcountry Artist Market at the Music Farm!
Visit us there on November 13 from 10am to 3pm. The bar will be open.

See you soon!!

chain gang

I bought a really big obnoxious necklace recently. Then I thought... where and when am I going to wear this?? The answer was nowhere, not ever. So I took it all apart and made SEVERAL new pieces. It was fun experimenting with different materials. Here are a few of the new things... the rest will be up on etsy soon!!

domestic

I decided that September should be sewing month and boy am I on a roll! I cranked out some jewelry pouches:

earring-sized... cute!

fun fabric from scrap exchange

The main project was an apron. I got a pattern and went to work. It has ties and pockets and pleats and everything!! This one is for Mary (surprise, Mary! Hope you like it!), and I have plans to make some more half aprons. With all of the kitchen experimenting I like to do, I think an apron will come in handy.

full apron and little helper

pretty & pleated

family dinner

My Grandmother came to NC for Mary's wedding last weekend and is staying with my folks for an extended vacation. They all drove up to Durham for an evening at the Dwyer-Winton house.

The Menu:

breaded & baked eggplant slices with roasted tomato sauce (tomatoes from my garden!)

lemon pepper chicken on top of mixed greens with balsamic dressing

pea & parmesan risotto

baked brie with mixed berry preserves, served with baguette

coffee and chocolate biscotti

I was a little bit behind schedule with cooking times, but everything went well. I was so excited to entertain that I forgot to take pictures!! The eggplant dish was inspired by our recent cooking class at Revolution. The baked brie looked good, and tasted even better. I had fun planning the menu, getting out all my serving dishes, and trying new recipes. It was a lot of fun hanging out and having a relaxing dinner with family. Who wants to be my next dinner party guests?

Plus, Mom and Grandmom showed lots of love for L&L as they tried on jewelry and made some purchases. THANK YOU!! I made some new things this morning and they'll be up in the shop soon.

UPDATE: Mom snapped some pics that evening!

flowers

I saw a post on Design*Sponge last month on how to make peony-looking flowers from coffee filters. How cute! They used yellow hues and made a bunch. I used the ink from the cartridge lamps to dye my filters blue. I only tried a few as a test... didn't want a ton of filters to go to waste.

Voilà:

dyed

dried

assembled

arranged

I think it went well! If I ever need some cheap and easy decor, for a guest room perhaps, I'll know what to do! I might try yellow or purple next go-round.

brace yourself

...for all these bracelets!! ha. After selling 2 online (thanks, Melissa!) and a special request from Mary, I was inspired to make new bracelets. Check 'em out!





These, and MORE, will be up on etsy soon!

I will be getting some new supplies from Hannah to work with... recycling old and broken jewelry. Then the sewing shall begin! I have a lot of projects lined up.
I declare September as sewing month!!

OFFICIAL

check out our stuff!!




business cards, a stamp, and magnets!!
I'm excited.