A happy little blog feature... and some teasers.

Sorry for the big gap between posts, friends. The busy season is beginning, and I have so many projects in the air right now. There are so many new exciting things in the works! I can't wait to share them with you!

In the meantime, though, I wanted to post a link that brought me a smile this morning. A blogger featured House of Moss today, out of the blue! Tenae Stewart of Strawberry Moon wrote a sweet writeup on my work after seeing it at Renegade San Francisco. You can check it out HERE.

Our San Francisco Mini-Tour

Cable cars! Definitely worth the 45-minute wait in line.

Lombard Street, the "crookedest street in the world," is just as wonderful on foot as by car

The beautiful moody fog and the Golden Gate Bridge

Erik inspects the cables

This sight gave me a bit of a scare: Grace Cathedral was undergoing construction for floor repairs! I had so been looking forward to walking its labyrinth, so we tried the door anyway... and it was open! And the labyrinth was still in place!

Not only was it open and the labyrinth was still there, but there was a gorgeous installation of ribbons hanging from the ceilings. It was one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen.

The ribbons make an already-striking space seem even more otherworldly

Chinatown and its lanterns!

Pier 39 and its musical staircase and its crowds. :) We ended up here about 3 times in 4 days.

Alcatraz is the ever-present background of the area of SF we frequented

"Postcard Row," indeed

This past weekend we took a road trip to San Francisco for Renegade Craft Fair. We tacked a couple of extra days on, and made it into a sort of "working vacation." We made a mini-tour of San Francisco, which is one of my favorite cities in the United States.

With the exception of the Golden Gate Bridge and Postcard Row (and Alcatraz, of course), we explored all of this on foot and by cable car. Thanks to a well-located hotel, we could even walk to and from the show! Not only did this save money on parking, but walking is my favorite way of getting to know an area.

The weather was cloudy and a bit chilly, but it was a welcome break from the hot weather here in the Portland area and especially from the über-hot winds of the drive down through northern California!

It was wonderful to get away. Both Erik and I have spent most of the summer very busy with work, so the change of scenery and pace was much-needed. It's amazing how much living you can pack into one day when you try. I'm going to try to remember that, to get the most out of this summer, before the insanity of fall and the holiday season begins.

Renegade Craft Fair Summer 2013 in Review

Thank you, San Francisco! Renegade Craft Fair was a resounding success. It was my first experience with Renegade, and I'm won over.

We spent Saturday and Sunday inside the Fort Mason Festival Pavilion with 250+ other makers, as well as hordes of handmade-appreciating shoppers.

This was my first experience with a U-shaped booth. Usually I go for a single table at the front of the booth, but since we were sharing a spot this time (with the best booth-mates ever: Laura and Julian of Yes & Yes Designs!), we improvised this shape at the last minute. I had brought only minimal display pieces because of my tiny car, but we used what we had and it worked out wonderfully!

It was a goal of mine for House of Moss this year to do an out-of-state show. It turns out, getting a temporary California seller's permit to collect and submit sales tax sounds a lot more complicated and intimidating than it ends up being.

Erik and I also stretched the trip out by a couple of days so we could explore the city. I'll post some of our tourist pictures soon.

This weekend's show: Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco!

Good morning, everyone! Show alert: House of Moss will be selling at the amazing Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco this Saturday and Sunday, July 27th & 28th, from 11am-7pm both days!

I'll be debuting a brand-new part of my display, too. Ever seen a 6-foot amanita mushroom? No? Then step right up and see mine! We're booth #147.
 
Any San Francisco friends, or anyone who happens to be tourists like us in that city (no shame!), please do stop by and say hi!

You can find out more about the show HERE.