Year's End store updates

Check out my new hats on my website here
And on Etsy

I thought this was cool...

and wanted to share this tutorial on my blog. Not created by me though:)
The credit for this very inspirational "How to make your own hang-tags" goes to...
Michelle
A cool idea to recycle and repurpose small things that you already have around the house and give your items a great personal diy touch.

Sneak peek of new tams...and Thank You

Just a few brief thoughts.
I am not quite there yet to list in full swing again, but I do have new One of a kind hats and new colors for my basic hat designs. I will make that extra little effort to sew in loose ends, take pictures, edit and print new business cards this weekend and get back into the groove.
I still reflect on the time I had shared with my children over the Christmas holidays and now I try to get used to our 2-person household again. Too quiet:). Seems like there never is enough time to do all the things you had planned, in the middle of Christmas preparations I feel like I have left out something important to do or say to show them how important they are to me. Even if they are 20-ish that maternal instinct never fails...and we feel like we want to be that perfect mum straight out of a Hollywood picture. Of course we never reach that role model because only in the movies mums are perfect.
The end of the year evokes all this self-reflection, evaluation of past events and hopes for improvements. Whether it's related to our crafts or our personal life.
More altruism in our daily activities instead of talking about it..."Talk don't matter if the walk's no good" (song lyrics).
Heading further with "going green" in respect of mother earth, too.
Business-wise I have plans to become more independent from selling platforms and concentrate more on my website Purple Sage Designz. The internet has provided us with great tools to realize the small home-grown indie business. Technology and crafts performed with simple tools made a perfect match for me.
A big Thank You to all my great customers who trusted me with their kind business over the past few years.

Merry Christmas

Holiday greetings!
I will resume business in a few days and update my blog as well.
Spending time with my family and just taking a short break!

Cool mandalas -- and children are home for Christmas

I don't have a lot of time for my blog until after Christmas. My own mandala graphics have been made, thanks Sid. Sharing them over the next few days, those are huge pixel sized photoshop images. Please note they are copyrighted.

Thoughts about crocheting...and what mandalas have to do with it

I had talked a lot about my business and new hats for sale in my previous posts, shared ways to save on time and prepare for the holiday rush...today I would like to share some insight thoughts about what's behind my drivenness to crochet.
I have always used crochet as a medium to make my own clothes and styles, then I made ponchos and complete outfits for others for sale...and it was last year when I started to make hats (almost) exclusively. Tams, dread-lock beanies, hippie head attire mainly, even though I sometimes mix in a bit of BoHo or vintage chic, just for the heck of it, and because I love eclectic style mixes. Well, all my hats are constructed in rounds. And here is where I believe my addiction to crochet hats seems to have its origin...crocheting in circles until my head seems to spin. And when I thought about circles, mandalas came to my mind soon.
(simple mandala crown tam)

The pleasure of crocheting in circles has absolutely captivated me. And there was a time when I loved to color black/white copies of mandalas with any kind of pencils or crayons. Round shapes or circles have a magical soothing and relaxing effect.
I did some research on the internet and found this very informative site www.mandalaproject.org
which answers questions about the origin of mandalas, their meaning in Sanskrit, mandalas in nature and the healing power and mystic of circles in a very straightforward language.
I asked my companion to design mandala graphics in "my colors purple and green" for me, I hope to get them soon. They will inspire a lot of my new designs for 2008.
This beautiful mandala is not our work, but can be viewed among many more mandala creations in this mandala gallery.
My wares are getting few and rare in my online stores these days because I will not list my favorite staple items and completely new designs until after Christmas.
New designs need inspiration and life experiences, found in nature, in interaction with people, not while sitting on my couch and crocheting day in and day out.
With most orders already filled, I am almost there...

Bachman Turner Overdrive -- Taking Care of Business

I don't have a lot of news today, basically I am still in the same routine and I don't want to bore anyone.
On a lighter note, we are so lucky to have power, heat and cooked food. Half a million of people in Oklahoma don't have these basic luxuries due to the ice storms of the past few days. Keeping these folks in my prayers.

I found this live video of BTO on YouTube and it's just pure 1970s cult, uplifting and energetic, hope you'll enjoy. I will make another major trip to the post office today and then the number of orders should decrease since we already have December 12th. Stay warm and safe, everybody!

Ice Days -- good time to crochet new tam hats

We have ICY DAYS...since yesterday I feel like a hermit hiding out in our warm home. The only time I left the house was when my companion drove me to the post office with his 4 wheel drive truck. My little car is worthless on days like this in the country.
Good thing that I always stock up on food and necessities, so we are are ready for any things to come. As long as we have power, it's all good.
Since there is always a bright side about everything I have had a lot of time to crochet...and have added this classic warm chunky dread lock beret tam to my website.
Available here

My crafty family -- Belvederos crochet shop = my sister

Today I would like to promote my lil sis' etsy shop : BELVEDEROS (named after one of her favorite vacation spots).
This is my favorite girl sweater in her shop...and my favorite girl beanie hat...beautiful handcrocheted soft items.

You can buy the tunic here
You can buy the hat here
A while back I wrote a post about the crafting tradition dating back to grandma and grandpa...a seamstress and a professional men tailor. My mother picked up the craftiness by handknitting awesome sweaters and hand embroidery. My father was a skilled shoe-maker and now it's my sister and I living the crafting life. We both have found our passion in crocheting.
My new creation:
a tam with added chain stitching on the crown
available here

It's getting cold outside

and it's time to list the warm chunky wool blend tams. This walnut brown unisex dread-lock beanie tam is available at Purple Sage Designz
We stocked up on rock salt today because ice, snow and sleet have been announced in our weather forecast. After last year's unusual cold and severe winter I had hoped it would be easy this year...o well.
On a lighter note, I found a few pine cones from our own pine tree in the front yard and decorated my Christmas candle basket. So pretty and natural, I just don't like store bought decorations anymore. Pictures will come soon.

Last round of classic warm beret tams before Christmas and Sankt Nikolaus

Available on Etsy
It's been a super busy week and I plan to take it a bit slower during the remaining weeks in December. I have listed my classics again, most likely it will be the last time in December. My popular colors such as black, brown, red and camel sell very well and it gets a bit boring remaking a design so often. So, I will refocus on One Of A Kind tams pretty soon, using some nice yarns that I didn't have time to crochet with.
It was a grey day here in Oklahoma with rain and sleet. I thought about Dec 6th being the traditional St. Nikolaus Day in Germany. Children, co-workers and friends usually are being surprised with candy, small presents or nuts. St. Nikolaus is similar to a Santa Claus, but actually he was a historical figure and became a patron saint of children.

You can read more about German Christmas traditions here...Adventskalender

and here is a pretty informative article about Sankt Nikolaus...see what I am missing:)

Wuthering Heights -- Kate Bush video to relax

In search for inspiration and a retreat from the pre-christmas heck I searched for some 70s videos with an unusual flair. I think Kate Bush in her red dress has created a wonderful classic song... I'll go light a candle on a dark December evening:)

Pure Wool Hippie Tam and struggle at the post office

For sale at Purplesagedesignz
I guess everyone is busy these days. I am no exception. I set a bit of time aside to give some love to my website. I am low on wares these days due to high sales, so please bare with me if you don't find the "right" hat in my stores prior to the holidays. For 2008 I have developed a lot of ideas for new designs. I just need time to realize them in yarn, wool, hemp and cotton:)
I listed this smaller pure wool tam today on my website, a classic cream color and a moderate size for those who don't have super-sized locks.
Ah, the post-offices....
Yesterday I had to take my yarn packages back home again with me because I hadn't paid attention to the print on the boxes. I had recycled some boxes which had contained chemicals in their former lives, like cleaners, clorox eg. A big no-no:)
So, I markered every print out, taped them in a very creative way just to take them back today. And they passed the inspection, oh my.
Anyway, I donated some afghan and baby yarns to members of my charity group. I don't seem to find time enough to contribute with crocheted items, so I decided to give away some yarn to those who have more time.

Update of my website and a lil' different Christmas Shopping at a great charity site

Available here
It's a grey and stormy Saturday afternoon, the ideal weather to take care of website matters and update my blog.
As promised I keep adding to my own website and have listed this sweet tam again, a pretty greyish green warm and chunky longer tam. I will try to bring this design in different unisex colors since it really goes well with earthy colored clothes.
And I did a little Christmas shopping at this charity site, all proceeds go to the propane gas fund for the Pine Ridge Reservation. Nice handmade items, embroidery, crochet, inexpensive jewelry and beadwork, personalized tote bags. Check them out, buy gifts and help those in need. All prices include shipping, awesome.
Carfting for A Cause Shop