Monday, June 20, 2011

Why is the Fringe Prop Expert Now Making Baby HATS?!

For years, when asked about baby hats to match my PuffPelts™, Fringie™ blankets and Belly 2 Baby™ wraps in my photo prop boutique, I've referred photographers to order their beanies from fantastic designers such as KnitrGal, OopsIKnitItAgain, KnitWitWoolies, PDXBeanies and other favorites of mine.

I just hadn't caught the hat-making bug (and I'm a big believer in following our own, creative passion)! Besides, I felt like everything had already been done already and as you know, I will only launch a product if it's not available elsewhere.

Then....I had an urge. And I had an idea, too (this image from Lenka Green of Jammin' Swing Photography in Edgewater, Florida is of the finished hat)! :)



Top priority: I Googled to make sure my idea wasn't out there already, even though I had never seen it. Nope; I seem to have really hit on something brand new!

So, I got to knitting (I create without following patterns, so since this was my VERY FIRST hat, I was on my own to decide on the perfect yarn and the right size and number of stitches) .... initially the little beanie-to-be looked like this:



Then I stitched it together and it was really starting to look like a real hat:



But I was just getting started; I still needed to add the 'specialness' that would make it stand out from all other hats! At first it looked like a beanie with fake "hippie hair" attached, ha ha:



Then I bundled it all together to make an adorable stocking cap with a topknot tassel pom at the top (image by Tracy Joy Photography in the Chicagoland, Illinois area):



And here it is shown on a red cylinder with my matching 'Granola' cream fringe hammock /blanket )underneath:



I'll still continue to honor the hard work of fellow prop designers and credit them whenever I gratefully receive a photo of "the pics u take with the props I make," that includes someone else's hat; I love my hat-making peeps! :D And now I'll be adding my design voice to the choir if a photographer would like to order a matching hat along with their Crickets prop blankie.

As always, thank you for your support and interest; I hope you feel the love and appreciation coming from the Crickets Cribb every day!

Hugs,
Celeste (Crickets)
Get a matching hat and blanket set, too!

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Nickets' FruitFetti Fusion Lunch!

So, my husband Nicholas (I get to call him Nicky or Nickets) rocks. He's super 'mazing. And I love him and how he pampers me.

This morning he was watching cooking shows on cable and got all fired up with excitement and creativity (he's the food, beverage and Village Cafe manager at Best Friends Animal Society, which if I do say so myself is the perfect job to showcase his many talents)!

He made a whole new lunch for us, (very) loosely inspired by the exotic fruits and flavors the TV chefs were using. Well, to be exact, he made this for ME since he had his wisdom teeth out on Wednesday (those who follow me on my personal facebook page will see that I FAINTED instead of taking care of him, so pathetic, lol)!

I asked him to write down what it all was so I could share. Here's what it is:

Multi-Grain Medley Rice Garnished With Sliced Fresh Avocado

Steamed Minced Garlic Green And Yellow String Beans

Summer Fruit And Vegetable Salad On A Bed Of Organic Romaine Hearts; Made With Fresh Apricots, Diced Fuji Apples, Sliced Anaheim Green Peppers, Cherry Tomatoes, Raw White Onion Rings, Cubed "Follow Your Heart" Vegan Mozzarella Cheese, Chopped Vegan "Gardein" Brand Chipotle Citrus Chicken, Melded With A Dash Of Lime Juice And Thick Mango Nectar Tossed With Fresh Mint And Cilantro. Garnished With Whole Bing Cherries

And here's what it looks like:



Plus ..... Ginger Lime Slush!!!



Is your jaw on the floor at all those yummy, fresh and flavorful ingredients?! I was in picnicking heaven!

But wait, there's more:

Strawberry Lemonade Layer Cake for dessert!!!! Holy Goo, Batman (and that's a good thing)!



Nickets, I love you! Thank you!
Crickets