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Renegade Chicago this weekend!

Yes, it's here again!  I love Chicago, so I love going there, but this show is ALWAYS the weekend immediately following my birthday... so I usually delay really celebrating until after we get back.  This year we're actually doing dinner + cake before we leave, plus we're doing what is literally our quickest trip in + out, so if you see me looking especially confused/exhausted (or just napping under the table) at the show, you'll know why. 

We're in booth #145 this year!  I'm sharing a space with the adorable bright lights, little city. We're in a corner spot, so we should be easy to find, especially with all the bright colored stuff we both make.  If you get a chance to stop by, please mention this blog for 10% off ANY purchase from me.

Again, it's from 11-7 this Saturday + Sunday, September 12th + 13th.  There are so many talented people and amazing things to see!  Renegade website (and more details, directions, etc.) here!

vote for travelingrhinos on Etsy! (please!)

just a note to say that one of my handspun yarns -- GIRL GROUP (that's it above, and there on the far left in the screenshot underneath)-- was nominated in Etsy’s “Voter” for “Which Handspun Yarn Makes You Feel Crafty?” 

I'd be super-grateful if you voted for me, but I'm also thrilled if you just go and check out the eye candy, and show support for all the talented handspinning happening out there!  actually, if you go + vote, then come back and leave a comment here telling me, I'll add your name to this month's big drawing.  you don't have to say who you voted for!

voting is here:
http://www.etsy.com/voter_list.php?ref=voter&room_id=68

thanks!  be back in a bit with renegade chicago info! 

2009 summer rewind

So, I don't know how interesting this is to most of you out there (it's not really crafty or fibery or anything), but I just wanted to do a little summer recap, since I've been so m.i.a. around here.  The west coast Renegades seemed like they were just the beginning of the summer, but they were sandwiched between showers, bachelorette parties, weddings, visits, weddings, and more weddings. 

Of course, one constant is always food.  We sure like to eat, don't we?  Without further ado, the very abbreviated summer summary.  In mosaic form, of course.  You can click through any mosaic to flickr for more detailed details.

L.A. (July)



San Francisco (mid-late July)

NY + Pittsburgh (end of July-early August)

More Pittsburgh (early August)

Boston / New England (June-August)

I wanted to include highlights in this post, but honestly, I'm desperately behind in my packing for Chicago.  Feel free to email/comment if you have questions about anything specific as far as food, restaurants, or places go.  Hope you had a lovely summer too!

09/09/09

today is supposed to be a super-special day numerologically or something, so I figured it was as good a day as any to launch the new travelingrhinos.com.  since I've been putting it off for months and all.  my webhosting had been a headache for so long, with service interrupts, email issues, and nonexistent customer service.  this was long overdue.  I'm giving up a lot of functionality with the loss of zen cart, but since the theme of my life is SIMPLIFY right now, I think it's going to be ok.

launched 9/9/09 at 9pm (ok, it was 9:01).  I can use all the good karma I can get! 

anyway, I'd appreciate it if you'd check it out if you've got a spare minute, and let me know if any links are broken, or if anything looks weird to you...

Also, I've got a new newsletter service, that I'm hoping will also simplify things for me... I'm going to email everyone on the old list to transfer voluntarily too, but you can go ahead and sign up over on the right there. 

I'll be doing a bunch of giveaways to celebrate the new site, and also since it's been way too long since the last one!  And, since September is my birthday month (I'll be 31 on Friday!  Yikes!), I've got lots of extras to throw in just because!  Newsletter subscribers will get an entry automatically, and you can leave a comment here for an additional chance.  I think I'll leave entries open for at least a couple weeks...

The last couple months have flown by so quickly, I think I might have whiplash.  I've got a big summer rewind post planned for tomorrow, plus some details on this weekend's Renegade Craft Fair!  See you tomorrow!

traveling rhinos in la-la land!

we're on the west coast for two weeks!
given the rain + cold in New England recently, this is WONDERFUL.

this weekend we're at Renegade LA!
July 11th & 12th, from 11-7, at the California Market Center.
next week: San Francisco!  more on that (and fun with eating + sunshine on the west coast) soon! 

renegade craft fair, part I.

Yup, it's the first Renegade of the year!  Hooray! 

Renegade Craft Fair Brooklyn, at McCarren Park in Williamsburg
Sat + Sun, June 6 + 7 from 11-7
www.renegadecraft.com

Please stop by if you're in the area and say hello!  We'll be in booth #147.
Hope to see you there!  Also, I will try to be back soon with non-craft fair news.

Philadelphia Love.

Well, I'm about to be elbow-deep in dye vats, but wanted to mention (oh-so-casually) that we'll be in Philadelphia this weekend (May 30th + 31st) for the Art Star Craft Bazaar. 

It's my first year doing Art Star, and I'm really excited!  Not also because we REALLY just like the city itself a lot too... it's been almost 4 years since we were last there, but I'm excited to find some time for a tiny bit of wandering (and cheesesteaks!) and MAYBE, JUST MAYBE, dinner at morimoto... a girl can dream, right?

Any suggestions for places we should try to swing by?  We're staying downtown (? shows you how well I actually know Philly) -- well, right near City Hall and pretty close to the Liberty Bell and Penn's Landing...

fun with spring events!

so, I have a blog post in the works about making dumplings (yum!) in the works, but I'm about to do my first craft fair for the spring/summer season and thought I'd pop in to tell you about it.

 

We were there last year, and except for more goose poop than I like to see (really I prefer not to see any at all but there was kind of a lot on some parts of the lawn), it was a really fun event.  Lots of crafts, games, sheep(!), sheep dog demos, and of course, FOOD.  I've been thinking about having a frozen apple cider since last spring. 

Anyway, it's from 10-4 at Gore Place, in Waltham, Massachusetts. 
More info here: http://www.goreplace.org/sheepshearing.htm
Please stop by and say hello if you're in the area!  We'll have sunblock and shade-- it's supposed to be in the 80s! 

there's something to be said...

...for instant gratification crafts.  Especially when you're hiding out working on your taxes.  I just rediscovered cubeecraft.com, which is perfect for when you need a little break from un-fun things.  I took a break and put together a little Prince of my own the other day. 

 

Isn't he cute?   (And yes, that is Law & Order on Netflix Instant in the background on my computer.  Don't judge me.)  What I love most about Cubeecraft is that there is no glue required.  Just a nice sharp pair of scissors and an X-acto knife, if you've got one.  And oh, the variety!  So many fun friends to choose from!  I'm thinking that maybe Mulder & Scully should be next, or perhaps Lion-O? (Thundercats, ho!)  Mayor McCheese & Grimace are pretty tempting too.  Too many to choose from!  There are lots of simpler cubes with less pieces, too.  Don't be surprised if I reappear here with a horde of little paper buddies!

PS. How much do I love the Katamari games?  If you haven't played before, find a friend who still has a PS2 and try it.  Or just watch someone else play it.  Seriously. 

a spring fool...

Well, so much for blogging promises.  Made and broken.  I think my break from (my already only semi-regular) blogging and reading blogs in general has been a good one, but I think it's about time to ease back into the whole thing. 

March definitely did NOT go out like a lamb... at least not like any lamb I would be fond of... gusting winds, low temperatures, COLD rain.  Boo.  To help me out of my why-doesn't-it-feel-like-spring-yet? funk last week, we went shopping for fresh fruits & vegetables and came home with these lovelies:

I LOVE radishes!  But don't always have a plan for them... this time we were ready, though!

+

=

(YUM.)

Sorry for the darkening photos, it was getting late while we were finishing up.   We used this recipe from this book.  Which, by the way, I like a lot.  I used to have a subscription to FOOD Magazine, but I could never remember which issue a recipe was in, which was annoying.  This is much easier, and contains a lot of the more sensible, quick-prep recipes.  Perfect for quick dinners.

We subbed rib-eye for the skirt steak.  The only other tweaks we made were to add a little more lime and cilantro, and to cut the olive oil (down to just a few spritzes) a bit.  Seriously, delicious.  And honestly, quicker than most of the dinners we have, including the sad ones where we are baking or microwaving something frozen. 

Happy April, everyone!

fun with holiday shows, part one.

Just a quick reminder... tomorrow, December 7th is packed full of awesome events!

Bazaar Bizarre Boston 12-7pm
at The Castle, Boston, MA
http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/boston.html

and

stART at the Station 12-5pm
at Union Station in Worcester, MA
http://www.startonthestreet.org/start-station

Be back in a couple days with more shameless self-promotion fun holiday shopping event suggestions!

headed to the left coast (again)...

Well, the fall has been more of a whirlwind than expected.  Some personal stuff going on here-- nothing that constitutes a full-on emergency per se, but just stressful enough to keep me as focused as I'd like to be at this time of year.  Lots of things (blogging, flickr, updates) seem to have gone out the window as I deal with family things and keeping up with the essentials.  On that note... time to pimp Felt Club!

Southern California, come on out!  The show looks AMAZING.  There are so many cool artists + crafters vending, and loads of workshops, swag bags, food, drinks and more!  I'm super-excited to be able to go out + participate.  More info at the website, of course, but the basics:

FELT CLUB: HOLIDAY 2008
Sunday, NOVEMBER 16, 11am-7pm
@ Shrine Auditorium Expo Center
700 W. 32nd St., LA CA 90007

Will be back asap (I swear!) to draw some names and send out goodies (thanks to everyone who wrote or commented) after the weekend.  Hopefully I'll remember to take a few photos while I'm out there, too. 

sharing the wealth

Well, it's my birthday this month.  In two days, actually.  And one thing I really liked in Taiwan is that your birthday is about giving to others, not about others giving to you.  People treat their friends to dinner on their own birthdays.  And while I will admit that I haven't yet and may never shake myself of the joy of receiving a thoughtful gift, I have to say that I've always loved giving gifts even more.  (Sometimes I give myself gifts too.  Somehow, I always know exactly what I want!)

So, to start the celebration off, I've been posting specials to the etsy shop each day.  They're changing, and they're pretty good, if I do say so myself.  I'll have even more stuff on the website + here once we get back from Renegade in Chicago this coming weekend. 

In the meantime, it's been WAY too long since I last drew a name + gave some things away.  I'm going to do exactly that, and be giving some serious quantities of stuff away at the end of the month.  And I'm going to give you lots of chances.  Add your name to this multiple times! 

Here's how to enter:
1. Leave a comment on this post naming... hmm, let's see... your favorite kind of birthday cake!
2. Send a photo or photos of anything you've made with traveling rhinos fiber or yarn for the gallery.  each individual item made will count for a separate entry.  it's even ok if you've sent the item in to me previously!  you still get an entry per item.  send flickr links/photos to gallery[at]travelingrhinos[dot]com.
3. Sign up for the newsletter, here!  If you're already on the list, send me a note at info[at]travelingrhinos[dot]com with the subject "newsletter entry" instead!

Ok, that's it for now.   See you soon!

summer rewind

hmm.  well, I guess I'll go with pictures since I feel a little overwhelmed at the idea of trying to explain all that's happened since my last real post about anything... basically the summer was about spending time with Dane + Daisy, traveling, and food.  Oh, and there was fiber in there too.

(click through to see more detail on any of these)

Guess we're all caught up now... ;)

Renegade Craft Fair, San Francisco edition.

Hi friends!

Just a quick reminder that the First Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco is this weekend!  If you're in the area, please stop by!  It's at the Fort Mason Festival Pavilion on Saturday and Sunday, July 12th & 13th from 11-7.

We'll be in booth #33, along with a ton of amazing crafters, plus food and music!  More info + directions at http://www.renegadecraft.com.

Talk to you soon!
xo,
eling