February 2011 Blog Update

Yes it is almost the end of February and still no sign of spring.  I am so tired of the gloomy, cold days of winter and craving warm, sunny days.  So if spring won't come to me, I will go to it.  So my daughter and I are off the Los Angeles/Disneyland for 6 beautiful days of fun in the sun and palm trees.  I can't wait, I am so excited to go to Disneyland - I love it there and it doesn't matter what age you are - it brings out the kid in you.  My mini sock monkey "Travelin' Pete" has his Mickey ears on and is ready to meet his idol - Mickey Mouse.

It has been another busy month of sock monkey birthday parties and custom orders.  I love the ideas for sock monkeys my customers come up with - they are so creative.  Here is my latest - Brobee from the Yo Gabba Gabba Show.  Now that I have conquered him, I am going to attempt the other characters.  Photos will follow next month.

A couple other monkey requests I am working on are a Mickey Mouse Sock Monkey, a hippo sock monkey and the Record Man from the Polka Dot Door.  I have such fun creating custom made sock monkeys and if anyone has a request, please send me an email and I will see what I can do.  - trenwen@shaw.ca.

I have been working on a couple new monkeys with different faces.. here are some photos of the new look.

I am continuing my quest to take a photo every day of 2011.  Below is my favorite photo from February.

Remember to check out my facebook page for monkeys currently available for sale and remember to "like" my page.  http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Funky-Monkey/219600230627?created

So until next month, stay warm, I am sure spring will be here soon.



First Blog of the Year

Yes it is my first blog of the year so HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!  Sorry it has taken me this long.

Have been busy this month shovelling a ton of snow.  And yes the snow is FREE for the taking.

I also have been hosting a couple of sock monkey birthday parties.  They are proving to be quite popular and is a fun birthday party activity plus they get a sock monkey they have made to take home.  If you are in Edmonton or surrounding areas, please contact me at trenwen@shaw.ca for more information.

I also have joined in Project 365 - this is a photography challenge to take a photo a day for an entire year.  I bought a new camera at Christmas and started this project on January 1st.  I thought it would be a good opportunity to renew my love for photography and to learn all about my new camera.  You can check out my photos on my flickr site:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/trendywendycrafts/sets/72157625606854723/

Finally, I have decided to try to update my blog monthly as opposed to daily or weekly.  This way maybe I will actually do it. 

This month the Funky Monkey has a tip of the month:  Did you know???  You can dress your sock monkey up in all kinds of accessories that can be found right at your local Dollar Store.  You can find teddy bear sweaters and t-shirts, hats and baby sunglasses.  Look around you will be amazed at what you can find.  The Funky Monkey did and is already for both Valentines and St. Patricks Day.

Finally, please join my Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Funky-Monkey/219600230627?created and tell all your friends - if I get to 100 fans I will make a draw for a Sockit.

Christmas is Coming

Christmas is coming and it is time to think about Christmas Shopping.  What better way to start than this weekend at the "Make It" a Handmade Revolution show at the Alberta Aviations Hangar on Kingsway.  It starts Thursday evening at 4:00 pm and runs until Sunday, Nov 28 att 5:00 pm.

Here is a coupon for $2.00 off admission:

I hope you get a chance to come by and see all the fabulous designers from across Western Canada.  The Funky Monkey will be there selling sock monkeys, Sockits, sock dinos, and more great stuff including banana and sock monkeys for your Christmas Tree.



Summer Tales Week 5

Well this is the first week of August already.  Where has the summer gone??? 

I started the week out by attending our annual Heritage Festival.  Sampling food from around the world.  My favorite though has to be Thailand... yummy pad thai, thai ice tea (which is delicious) and finishing with deep fried banana and mango ice cream.  Here is a photo of my daughter enjoying her pad thai.

Also, my husband and I celebrated our 21st wedding Anniversary this week.  I cannot believe how fast the time has gone by. 

And last but not least - I have been in a sewing frenzy all this week.  You have heard of a "barrel of monkeys" well have have a "bag of monkeys" - all patiently waiting for their eyes so they can see the world.

And while most people would see my work room as a totally insane mess, I call it "creative chaos".

So I am gearing up for another busy week of finishing off all my started projects in order to be ready to sell again next Saturday at the St. Albert Farmers Market.

On a final note, I am looking to increase the number of The Funky Monkey facebook friends.  So be sure to check out The Funky Monkey facebook page and add yourself.  If I reach 400 friends I will put your name in for a draw for one of my new sock creations (to be announced) .  

Summer Tales Weeks 3 & 4

I am a little behind on my blogging, but I was away last week blowing all my hard earned money in Las Vegas.  On the up side though, I didn't have to complain about the weather it was HOT, HOT, HOT, but oh so wonderful after the rainy, cool summer we had at home.  Well at least the weather has been better since we have come home.

I took one of my sock monkeys with me to Vegas.  Travellin Pete I called him - he is just a little guy you can carry in your purse.  Unfortunately Pete was not very lucky at the slot machines.

This week I have still been on vacation mode and just can't wrap my head around sewing monkeys and critters again, but by Wednesday I was well into the swing of things again. 

T-Rex's waiting teeth

I also had a Sock Monkey Block Party on Wednesday morning at 10:00 am.  9 eager participants attended including 1 mom and 2 boys who turned out to be pretty  good sewers.  We had a great time, sewing and stuffing the sock monkeys and when they were finished, all the kids attached their monkeys to the front of their bicycles and rode off to the playground. 

Thanks to the hostess for putting on the party and providing us with a lovely lunch.  I hope everyone had a great time.

Thats all for this week - I won't be at the St. Albert Farmers Market this week, but you can always contact me by email if you need something special.

Summer Tales - Week 2 (summer??? really???)

Well it is suppose to be the second week of summer, but while the rest of the country and US are in a heat wave, us in Alberta have cooler temperatures than normal, too much RAIN, and dare I say it ... even had SNOW in the mountains.  I do not think we have had more than 2 days in a row of sunshine this year which is very sad and why I will be seeking sunshine and heat elsewhere in a few days.  

The rainy view from my front window.

On the brightside, rainy days do spur creativity and gave me lots of time to catch up on my sewing for this Saturday's St. Albert Farmers Market.  My daughter and lovely market assistant Megan also got the creative bug and decide to take up her doodle drawing again.  So we purchased a Bamboo drawing tablet  and she has created some very cute drawings she is going to transform into charms.  I in the meantime have transformed her drawings into sock creatures.

This Norman the Narwal, the Unicorn of the Sea

I also added a T-Rex to my line of Sockasauras'.

RAWR!!

Thats about it for this week.  I hear Saturday is supposed to be a beautiful day and guess what??? NO RAIN.  I will be out selling at the St. Albert Farmers Market from 10 am - 3 pm.  So come out and check out all the great vendors.

Funky Monkey Summer Tales - Week 1

I have decided to try blogging once a week over my summer off.  So here goes ... my first week of summer and it has been a busy week.  With time off, comes summer maintenance meaning time to get that filling fixed that I have put off and get a new summer hair do!   I also finally had luck finding a groomer for my dog, he did get his hair cut but it did come at a cost the groomer and I got matching bites, plus I almost lost a finger.  And this is not good when you are trying to get your week of sewing caught up.. 

Speaking of sewing, I did manage to get all my weeks worth of sewing done and ready for the St. Albert Market this Saturday from 10-3 pm.  I also managed to get a special order done for a Bride and Groom Sock Monkey.  I have had such fun designing and dressing this lovely couple.  They are now bound for New Jersey.

And last but not least...World Cup Soccer action.  The Funky Monkey is all dressed and ready to cheer on his favorite team.  Hup Holland Hup!!!    He will be hanging out at the St. Albert Market tomorrow so stop by and say hi!

Sunday Summer Sock Monkey Party

There is nothing better than spending a beautiful Sunday afternoon with an awesome group of 12 year olds.  They were celebrating the end of their school year by having a sock monkey making party.  They were so much fun to teach how to make sock monkeys, they were entusiastic and definitely knew how to "accessorize".  I  would like to introduce you to their monkeys :

I am Pico

 I am Mr. Muggles

My name is Socks                                  

My name is Absolem

To Market, To Market

Well Saturday, June 19th is the official opening of the St. Albert Outdoor Farmers Market.  The market is open from 10am - 3pm.  There are over 250 vendors this year so there is lots to see and great stuff to buy.

My tent has moved this year to #160 and I will be there opening day.   I will then be back every Saturday from July 3-24 and again August 14-Sept 4.  I have lots of Sockits, Sock Monkeys, Sock Dinousaurs and Plush Owl and Monster pillows.  Looks like it is going to be a lovely, sunny day (we haven't had many of them) so be sure to come out and enjoy the day and say HI to the Funky Monkey!

It a Sock Monkey Birthday Party

Yesterday was my first Sock Monkey making Birthday Party with 6 lovely little ladies stuffing and sewing to make their very own sock monkey dolls.  The weather was lovely and we spent the afternoon in the backyard making sock monkeys.  And after 2 hours of some very hard work we had some wonderful one of a kind sock monkeys.  Including the birthday girl's bright orange monkey complete with button earrings.  Thanks to the adults at the party who assisted with threading needles and making knots and finishing off some of the monkeys and a special shout out to the dad who was left to sew on the earrings. 

If you would like to book your own sock monkey making birthday party please email me at trenwen@shaw.ca.  $20.00 per person, maximum of 6 children - at least 8 years of age.

It's May - Time To MAKE IT!!

Yes it is MAY already!!  Where did the time go??  Only 2 months and school is out for the summer.
May starts off the official craft season here in Edmonton. 

My first craft show this year will be Make It!  on May 29 & 30th at the Hangar on Kingway.  Admission is $5.00 at the door but be sure to get your $2.00 off coupon .  It's where all the cool people shop.  Everything is unique and handmade.

I will also be out at the St. Albert Market this summer.  This is one of the largest outdoor markets in Alberta and there is no better place to be on a sunny Saturday afternoon.   I will be there June 19, July 3, 10, 17, 24, August 14, 21, 28 and September 4.

I have been busy sewing all winter to get ready for the shows, so I hope you will get a chance to come by and buy. 

Sockits needing faces                                                       

Sock Monkeys needing eyes

Dinos and goofy pillow ready to go!

Owl pillow waiting for someone to hug them.

YEAH CANADA!!!

It is a proud day in our Canadian History.  Our Olympic team has won more GOLD medals than any other country in the Winter Olympics.  It is great to see our country scream out loud in a sea of red from coast to coast.

While watching the closing ceremonies - I have been working on some new fleece and felt plush characters. I think I may call them Socchi's in honour of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia.  Hope you enjoy them.  Look for their debut hopefully at the Spring Make It Show.  May 20 & 30th at the Hangar on Kingsway.

Happy New Year

Yes it is that time again.  Where did this past year go??  2009 has indeed been a whirlwind.  Between working at a full time job and making sock critters part-time, attending craft fairs and summer markets, and a well deserved vacation to Hawaii that about sums up my past year.

What will 2010 bring???  I have given up on resolutions as they only bring disappointment which, for me, leads me to eat more thus breaking the years resolution of losing weight.   Just not worth it.  Instead I take a book, write down goals I would like to achieve during the year and then forget about it.  I revisit my goal list at the end of the year and check off the ones I succeeded on.   Funny enough, it usually is most of them.

I would like to thank everyone who have given homes to my sock monkeys and sockits, or purchased owlpods and cell socks for their gadgets over the past year.  You help feed the need to create.  I look forward to a brand new year and new decade.

Upcoming Christmas Shows

Well I am on the downward slide finishing up the remainder of my Christmas Craft Shows.
I will be in St. Albert on Sat, November 28th, Saturday, Dec 12th, and Saturday, December 19th from 10am - 3pm.   I will also be attending the Handmade Mafia on Saturday, December 5th at the Savoy on Whyte Avenue next to the Army & Navy.

I had a couple weeks off and finally had time to design some thing new.

I have had an idea for a "Sockosaurous" line of sock dinousaurs and my first in line is a Brontosauras.

Here is my  next one a Stagosaurous

.

Woke up to a snow covered yard this morning and now it feels much more like Christmas.  Now I need to go get some shopping done before I get busy again.

Christmas in October

Well we did have snow in October so why not Christmas in October.  Luckily the snow melted, but Christmas is still coming.  Get an early start on your Christmas shopping by stopping by the Christmas in October Craft Show going on this weekend at Festival Place in Sherwood Park.  The times are:
1pm - 8pm Friday, Oct 30; 10am - 5 pm Saturday, Oct 31; and 12noon - 5 pm Sunday, Nov 1.

I'll be there selling all new Sockits and Sock Monkeys as well as some Christmas ornaments and other odds and ends.  Stop by for some candy --- Happy Halloween.

The Summer of Monkeys

Wow what a summer I had! I have 2 months off every summer and usually do not much of anything but this year has been fantastic.

First off I did my first Farmers Market ever , I spent 8 weeks at the St. Albert Farmers Market. With a broken tent, duct taped together, I managed to sell a whopping 119 sock monkeys and 94 Sockit creatures. Needless to say I had a busy summer sewing until I could no longer feel my fingers on the right hand.

The second wow was we went to Hawaii on a super duper deal. We stayed 12 glorius nights at the Hilton Hawaiian Village just steps from the ocean.

We celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary and my husbands 50th birthday in style. We also had a little stow away. One of my sock monkeys tagged along for the trip but it was a bit too hot there for him so he stayed in a nice air conditioned room the entire trip.

When we came back we loaded the car with socks and headed to Nanaimo to visit friends. I stuffed sock monkeys all the way there and sewed on arms and legs all the way home. A great way to pass the 12 hour driving time. We missed the ferry to the island by 15 minutes and ended up sleeping in the car...you know stuffed sock monkey bodies make a great pillow. I wish I had a picture.

Well now I am back at my real job and making sock for my Christmas Shows. New sock monkeys and Sockits are currently being made from socks I have collected over the summer.

I will be making more Sock Monkey cell phone holders, Owlpods, some Christmas decorations and Sock Monkey toques.

So far I am booked to appear at the following shows: Xmas in October, Festival Place, Sherwood Park Oct 30, 31 & Nov 1; Leduc Xmas Craft Show Christ the King School, Leduc Nov 8 & 9.

I will be at a couple of the indoor markets in St. Albert in November & December.

Continue to watch my blog for updates on new products and show updates.

New Name . . . New Era

After much consideration and being unhappy with my previous name of three years (Radical & Retro) ... I have finally made the decision to change the name of my business to The Funky Monkey Shoppe.

When I began Radical & Retro I was intending on making repurposed clothing and taking items from the past and recycling them into useful radical things of today. Well this just never materialized and I went down another path and became a "Sock Artist" making sock monkeys, cell phone cases, Sockits, Owlpods, pillows and loads of other fun items. So I have decided to change the name of my business to The Funky Monkey Shoppe - besides I can still put the "fun" in "funky" which has been my slogan all along.

Please note my Etsy shop name will change to The Funky Monkey Shoppe but the log in will still remain http://www.radicalandretro.etsy.com/ due to the fact that we are not allowed to change the username.

I am excited to start using my new name and I feel good knowing that it reflects the items I make.