I’m about to post my Etsy listing for V-day!

In the past, I posted the listings, and then announced them here and on my mailing list, but by the time I posted all the announcements, a few things would have been sold already!! So I’m trying to give you guys a bit of a heads-up first!

I know it’s almost 4 a.m. on the West Coast… so kinda weird timing… sorry about that!

Regardless, my items will be more of a celebration of candy and hearts year-round, rather than targeted for V-Day delivery. I just can’t guarantee you’ll get your items before V-Day anymore. I tried my best!!! I will upgrade all domestic orders to Priority, but again, no promises, sorry :(. I’ve just been back to back with deadlines for Yummy You and for my book, but I still wanted to squeeze in something cute on Etsy!

Click on the banner to shop in a few minutes!!

Not all items are represented in this collage! I have a total of 5 pairs of mitts for sale, but only one bracelet, one scarf, and one pin :(. I will try to make more puffy pins cuz I think they are fun, but that won’t be for a little bit! I also re-listed some candy-cane heart necklaces!

Lastly, Hipster Puppies. The descriptions are hilarious…. I want to submit a pic of Bibi in my new glasses frames.

Seal your envelope with a crochet heart!!

Sorry it’s the worst pic ever. I’m a girl on the move.

Hopefully an actual Etsy update within the next 12 hours 😛

It will be small….but heart-tastic!

… cuz I’ll spend more money than usual!!!

Hairy and I had a morning/afternoon in the East Bay today. We don’t venture across the bridge very much, but we had a couple of new places to visit.

First, we were super late to have breakfast with Elysse in Berkeley at Herbivore. She was very gracious about it and was studying her book on parasites. I had a super yummy tofu scramble and felt like I was pregnant with a food-baby the whole day. Then we went with her to visit Emily of BirdMafia who was vending at a little craft event at Knit One One, and I did end up buying something from Emily for my sister in law!

Then we headed over to Oakland where I wanted to check out Phoenix Optical. I’d heard about it after reading a blog entry of Star’s. Her new vintage specs looked awesome so I wanted to check this place out!! I have a really wide face with a strange shape, and apparently most eyeglasses look really bad on me and are too small and make me look like a granny with a pie-face. Cat-eyes glasses? Not on this pumpkin head. So I thought it could be a fun opportunity to check out some eyewear that you don’t see at, like, LensCrafters.

This place was a lot of fun. I didn’t intend to buy anything. I’ll blame Hairy. He is a shopping-pusher! I didn’t have my glasses Rx, cuz the last time I got my eyes checked was in Hong Kong…so I just bought the frames, and they don’t have lenses in them yet. I’m still trying to get used to whether or not I’d be brave enough to rock these everyday:

Hmmm, ehh?

They are pretty weird. They are just kind of thicker than I am used to. I kind of always wanted weird glasses, but I don’t know if I have the cajones to really commit. I will run around the house with them for a bit and see what happens!

They were actually vintage sunglasses, and I asked them to punch out the lenses so I could see what they were like. There was a cute white-framed pair that I wanted to try on, too, but apparently when whey tried to get the lenses out…WITH A HAMMER….the frames broke. That was sad. I felt really bad! But Hairy said if someone else wanted to buy them anyway and get the lenses punched out, they would have broken at that point, too.

Then Hairy wanted to check out Bake Sale Betty. Apparently they have a legendary fried chicken sandwich. There was a line out the door. We got in that line. And got the sandwich. And Hairy said it was really effin good. I was still full from breakfy, so I got a piece of pumpkin pie to go. In fun and unexpected news, Bake Sale Betty is also next to a yarn store, so I picked up some Cascade 220 Wool while we were there!

Then we came home and took an epic nap on the couch with the dogs, and then watched The Lovely Bones with Manda & her friend. I read the book years and years ago and totally don’t remember very much. I only recall that I liked the writing a lot. I don’t so much like depictions of heaven in books or movies a la What Dreams May Come. Overall I thought the movie was…not so great. But I definitely had to see it since I read it.

In conclusion, I also just bought these from Nicole Lindner. She’d sold a pair a little while ago, and I’ve been stalking her ever since, waiting for her to post more!

I’m still going to try really hard to post some Valentine’s Day-themed stuff on Monday or Tuesday. I’m not promising you’ll get your item in time for the big day, but I really think that stuff with hearts all over them are a year-round staple!!!

Sooooo I have been alluding to a big announcement for a little while, and I wanted to wait for some of the paperwork to clear up before mentioning anything. Then, I lagged on saying anything because I got mired in the stress of it all, and then it didn’t seem like such exciting news anymore…. and then it was like… what is the statute of limitations on hinting at something exciting….being able to announce it…and then failing to mention it anymore and let it fade and pretend like you never mentioned it in the first place? Hehehe, Ok maybe I over-think!

Anyhoodles….!!! My news is this:

YummyYou! by Twinkie Chan

There’s not really anything up there yet, just a placeholder, but everything has been happening at lightning speed and this is all I got right now! 😛 (btw….does the pic have a blue-ish hue to you? Let me know how it appears on your monitors!!! I am still having weird color issues I think!)

So yes, I partnered with a company to help me mass-produce (but still hand-make) my scarves and stuff and bring it to a bigger level. It’s what I’ve wanted for a long time, and I’m excited and scared that it is starting to happen. I could have tried to go bigger on my own, but I really didn’t want to end up spending all my time managing more helpers, dealing with quality control, handling fulfillment on a larger scale, etc. In fact, perhaps un-like many crafters, I never really dreamed of running my own business. I don’t have the entrepreneurial blood. I have the creative blood! Some people have both. I kinda don’t :P. I want to have lots of time to design new things…and considering how long it takes me to design/make ONE scarf … I need all the time I can get!

We went into super warp-drive, because the company was excited, and we were excited that they were excited, and we are prepping for a booth at the Pool Tradeshow (or the Magic Tradeshow) in Vegas on February 16-18. We kind of attempted to create something out of nothing in just TWO MONTHS. Sourcing the crochet goods. Making/designing new and exciting samples you’ve never seen before. Designing tees and hoodies. Packaging. Everything. It’s been crazy. Plus I’ve been working on my book! So this is why my Etsy shop has been like a ghost town!

The cool thing is that you will soon be able to get all your favorite Twinkie Chan goodies at a more affordable price, and there will definitely be more than, like, two cupcake scarves available at one time :).

I will still be here as Twinkie Chan, with my Etsy shop, designing new stuffs and handmaking old-favorites. Yummy You! will be the icing on the proverbial cake :).

So I can’t wait to share more about all of this as it happens! It’s really weird and bizarre and I have no idea how it will all pan out. But my goal for 2009, when I quit my publishing job, was to find a great company to work with, and I met that goal. 2010 will be a wild ride! It has been so far!

P.S. If there are cool/cute boutiques in your area that you think would love to carry Yummy You! by Twinkie Chan, please do leave a comment, and a link to it if possible. THANK YOU! 🙂 Happy Friday!