Christmas Is A Time Of Giving

SO for Christmas we ( The Handmade Brigade Of OC ) were contaced by Mercy House to see if we wanted to be part of their Stockings for homeless children living in motels all over orange county... Of course it pulled on my heart strings so we decided to make a craft party out of it!! It was a bunch of fun and good to know it was going towards a good cause. We bought the stockings and then had a crazy amount of crafty stuff to decorate them. People went a little crazy....



Some were literally 2 hours stockings... I made some myself and they were super easy... I turned all mine into reindeer hahahahha...



I guess the kids probably wont really care about the outside of the stockings but more whats inside but it was a good way to get people to come and celebrate Christmas by giving to those who are less fortunate then ourselves. Also got a chance to hang out with fabulous people who always support all our events. One being Frances and her Husband... Shes great! She always helps us with anything we need!!!

We also had a bunch of great sponsors who helped donate food and money to our event.. If it wasn't for everyones great support it wouldnt have been as sucessful as it was! I hope to make this an annual event for the HBOC.

How was everyones Christmas???

Here is a blast from the past... the freaking best Holloween costume since 1960... Honestly... this is genius!



This is my uncle hahahahhaah!

Pillbox Hat.... MEOW!

So I have been making cocktail hats lately and I am so in love.... My first attempt was This lovely pillbox leopard hat.... It was great fun to make. Once I made it I couldn't figure out if I was going to have to guts to wear it.... Of course I did anyways! I wore it to a craft show we put on in a bar in Costa Mesa... hahahaha. It was great fun. Why all craft shows are not in bars is news to me. It was the best show I've been to. Not profit wise but on the fun-o-meter it was a ball!


Anyways back to the hat... I couldn't figure out what to use... I was thinking black but then every time I do that everyone says " Are you going to a funeral?" and then it always reminds me of Johnny Cash and I want to say " Well Maybe I am... " Since I love black and I wear it all the time... bbuuuutttttt I also love me some leopard. just accents of it. I love my Cheetah Flats from Target. I wear them all the time. and for $12.99 you can't beat em! So the hat.... I am not quite sure how women back in the day kept them on there head. It seems like every vintage hat I have seen have different shapes to keep them on. I made a more modern way... elastic loops to add bobbi pins to. Worked like a charm! I think its weird that I haven't seem more people sporting cocktail hats... Like literally I've seen 1 girl on Southern California other then me. It seems like they are exploding all over fashion blogs, anthro, & urban outfitters, I even saw one at target!!! What the heck!

So anyways I didn't get a good pic of the hat.... I am sure this picture will explain why....

Like a true lady! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! SO anyways.... I love my hat and there will be plenty more to come... I need to get the ball rolling and start adding them to my Etsy Shop but of course like all things I have been up to my eyeballs in felt flower headband orders. Hopefully I get the Canon Rebel I want for Christmas and then I will be golden! So I dont have to use pictures like this anymore... HAHAHAHAHAHA I love how cheesey I am.


Oh I just got a new pair of shoes... I love them.... I feel like they make my feet look like I went and got chinese foot binding done... But I love the nostalgia of them.... what do you think?


Anyways... What is everyone asking or doing for christmas??? Anything good? Is it bad that when I go to look for stuff for other people all I can find is stuff for myself.... Should I be ashamed? because I am not... hahahahaa

Welcome back to California

Hahahah nothing says HELLO like a giant pair of blue balls.... OH JOY... this was one of my favorite places... Northern California in the Redwood forest.... So beautiful...

I've always wanted to visit and see these HUGE trees.... they were lovely... Just what I imagined... overwhelmingly giant and serene .



Walking through the forest is sooo refreshing... The air is soooo crisp and cool... It was so nice... different from the hustle and bustle. Its was abnormally quiet too. Not even birds. I kept on taking pictures. This is how it went....

Juan: " ugh why are you taking so many pictures of yourself?"
Me: " Well its so quiet which means the little animals are hiding from something..."
Juan: " What?"
Me: " I am taking all these pictures of me because if a bear mauls me as long as they find my camera they will know how to identify me..."
Juan: " Are you serious?"
Me: " Yup..."

This pic I was like " COME AND GET EM BOYS!!! (talking to the bears of course!) Come to find out I don't even think there are bears there...


Driving through the tree was cool but not THAT cool. I thought it was part of the drive... NO you had to pay some crazy old lady in a little hut $3 CASH.... since apparently they dont want the IRS to know they are charging poor little tourist to drive through their big ass tree.... it was cool though...



SO yeah... that was it... Have you ever been to the redwood forest? if not I suggest you go... its something to see... oh but FYI dont use a TOM TOM because you will get lost on a dirt road/ CLIFF OF DEATH overlooking the ocean for an hour only to run into some Prison that I googled and didnt even show up on the map... To be proceeded by a bitchy GF begging her Boyfriend to drive faster because she was totally freaked out....

A Diamond Is A Girls Best Friend....

So we all know at this point that my boyfriend is in Afghanistan.... I miss him terribly but I have a little bauble that make things not so hard... especially when its blinding me in all its beautiful glory... I told him when he left that girlfriend is going to need a friend.... so thats when Gus came along.... Then I told him that Girlfriend is going to need something to remind me how much he loves me and how waiting for him for 1 whole year is going to be shitty especially since hes going ot miss my b-day and christmas and everything important for that matter.... SO he bought me this AMAZZZZZIIINNNGGG ring I am so in love with it you have no idea. Its just what I wanted.... A vintage inspired promise ring ( yes promise ring... not engagement...) that looks like a flower.... and boy did he deliver... its so sparkly it makes my eyes hurt hahah just kidding not that bad but it is fabulous. Its hard to photograph too because it just looks like a flash rather then diamonds here is the best pic I can find of it while we were on a boat in SF....







Hahah dont you love my ghetto fabulous red nails... I call them my hooker nails... they are great I love them.. I miss Juan... my heart hurts... but my finger and eyes are soooo happy for this wonderfulness.... Hahahah I will be posting the rest of our road trip and then finally strt posting some craft stuff.... since that is what this blog started out as!!! hahahaha

Happy Halloween!!!

Happy Halloween. I hate Halloween but being a member of Handmade Brigade we had quite a few events! Last night we were part of theYELP.COM Party. Here are some of the pictures....



We had two booths. One painting faces and the other was my booth.... Making masks !!! It was insane! people were going crazy over these damn things. the best part.... drunk people + dim lighting + glue guns= hilarious people with burned fingers!









Happy Halloween!!!! and the best picture of all... Gustus as a DEVIL DOG!!!

Remembering Oregon: Multnomah Falls

Here is a little day trip we took to Multnomah Falls. It was so pretty!!! I am really glad we went out of the city to see how beautiful Oregon is around Portland. It was amazing. Of course I wasn't dressed to go hiking so the whole time I felt like I was going through chinese torture because I was wearing flimsy sandals walking on rocks... It literally felt like I was walking barefoot... Here I am looking all stupid.... Plus this was the day after our "voodoo donut" night... so I was HUNG OVER!!! Hung over and hiking in damn sandals... If that isn't love then freaking shoot me!


Here is Juan looking all messed up too!! haaahahahahaha


Despite our failing livers, headaches, splotchy skin, and puffy eyes the scenery was divine. Its so green and lovely.


The falls were so big!!! I was surprised!


We walked up to the bridge so we could get a good photo... and this is what we got hahahahahaha.... I am a trooper...


When we looked down the other side of the bridge at the pool where the falls ended this is what I saw.... A HEART!!! AAAAWWWWWWW PRECIOUS!!!



I miss juan and I am dying without him... hahhaaha not really but it sucks... oh and on a random note has anyone seen the Black jack taco???? Who the FUCK wants a black taco? As if the tacos aren't bad enough they gave them the bubonic plague. UGH GROSS!

Remembering Oregon: VooDoo Doughnut

I got to talk to Juan today for an hour and a half today. It was nice but then I was sad to have to say bye.... So to make myself even more depressed I am looking at our trip we took before he left... .hahhaha! Its not that bad. Looking at the pictures make me laugh. We had a good time. Except when Juan got us lost and then I was grouchy because I had to Pee... Thats another day though... Oregon was sssooo wonderful! I loved Oregon. I think if I were to live somewhere it would be there. Portland being my favorite. So being a tourist we had to hit up

voodoo doughnut "the magic is in the hole"


The first time we went it was 2am... We were super intoxicated ordered two voodoo doll doughnuts, took pictures with them, ate them and only remembered them by these pictures.... I couldn't even tell you if they were good because it was just that ugly that night...



and at 2 am... the line was LONG and out the door around the building... It was funny because there was some hip hop show or something of that sort and there was these "Gang therapy" people... aka... cops making sure no one gets shot... and Juan being drunk was like " WHAT? GANG THERAPY?? I'm from DC bitch... I know about REAL gang members im from DC... " SERIOUSLY??? JUAN SHUT UP Just because MS13 tried to shoot you doesnt mean you need to embarrass your WHITE girlfriend!! I wanted to kill him... he was talking soooo LOUD and he never acts like that when hes drunk but apparently doughnuts bring the worst out in him ahahahaha SO yeah...
finally got our doughnuts and took a cab to the hotel... woke up the next day and I wanted another VooDoo doughnut... since I missed the whole "taste" part of it... Juan said no... BOO!!! So then that night after we saw a movie we were going to stay one more night in Portland but then i was like " Lets go get VooDoo doughnuts and drive to Astoria TONIGHT..." and thats just what we did... This time I got an " Old Dirty Bastard" .... it was DAMN GOOD!!!


Juan being sober had a little more heart and felt a little guilty for eating the poor little voodoo doll


Me saying " MMMM I love voodoo doughnuts... So yum... now my stomach is going to have bubble guts the whole night!!! YAY..."


So yeah I suggest if you ever go to Portland to go here. Even if you dont like doughnuts... I am not a doughnut fan but Its so different. they have a doughnut called "cock and balls" "dirty snowball" & "Triple Chocolate Penetration" . How could you resist... Also you can get married there... and its open 21 hours a day.... be a tourist and go!!! What is your favorite doughnut?

Hypnotizing Our Chicken

My brother saw this on a skate video or something so we decided to try it on our chickens.... hahahaha Thats me laughing in the background..... No chickens were hurt in the process.... They are just dumb hahahah

A Sad Farewell...

The time finally came for Juan to leave... I am hanging in there. Trying to keep myself busy and keep my mind off how much this next 7-13 months are going to suck... I have turned into a leaky faucet. Never know when something will set me off... I feel like I am a combination of a pregnant women PMS and a 14 year old girl.... Emotions running wild. I am pretty good at keeping my emotions at bay but its nights that always get me... When things are quiet and I have too much time to think about stuff... I miss him... I worry for him... and I love him. My heart literally hurts. Its a feeling I can't explain. Its a constant feeling of loss yet worry but still hopeful and proud. To be honest its a horrible combination... I hope you guys keep him in your thoughts as well as everyone else over there....


I love you Pop... See you soon....



(ugh this picture made me cry the second I saw it load....)

Speakeasy By Handmade Brigade Sun 5pm

Its here!! Our first show at a BAR!!! I am super excited!!! I hope anyone in Southern California will come!!! I will be there wearing my new leopard pill box hat I made also selling some new styles of my Hair pieces! I was in charge of putting the goodie bags together and I got a bunch of AWESOME Etstians to donate... I also got our favorite indie business who inspired me to get stitching!

Sublime Stitching!!! WWOOO WWOOO WWOOO!!! They are awesome !! They sponsored our show so the first 25 people will be getting a FREE pattern !!!!
Check out more info on our Free Goodie bags
Also check out our upcoming events... We are looking for Vendors for our Holiday Show