Maryland Sheep and Wool: Appalachian Flat-Footing.

Can you believe I got up at 5am today? I still can't. 

But, I'm so glad I did!  Julia (of Crafty Nuggets) and her hubby invited me to take the 4 hour drive to Maryland, so we could soak up some wooly goodness and get a heaping helping of fiber culture. I can't thank them enough for letting tag along! They're definitely two of the best people, ever; like up there with Cat Stevens and Tom Waits. Seriously.

There were tons of things to do/see/buy eat, but I'm breaking this down into tiny digestible tidbits throughout the week, and at the end you get to see my haul. 

This post is dedicated solely to topic of Appalachian flat-footing. 

I am effing obsessed. I always have been. Being an expatriated good ol' boy, I have a soft spot for all aspects of Southern culture. I eat grits with hot sauce, listen to the Carter Family and have had an unhealthy crush on Randy Travis for ages That being said, I can't express how much flat-footing/buckdancing/clogging tugs at my heart strings.

If you haven't seen D. Ray White's Documentary "Talking Feet", you should probably get to it. Incredible! So much energy and creativity!

I'm going to leave you with a few of my favorite flat-footing videos from around the 'net. You'll be hooked. Just be sure to practice outside. I always knock things off the wall.

Incredible, right?!

Field Trip: The Giant Pumpkin Show!

Yesterday, we went to a giant pumpkin show! Can you believe the size of that thing? Last year's winner was 895 pounds! We didn't stay long enough to see who won this year, but my money was on the one above! The rest of the entries looked like giant blobs. This one was perfect!





These glass pumpkins were amazing! Unfortunately they were $50 a piece; definitely not in my pumpkin budget this month.

Kellyn went fall decor crazy! She has a new house and no decorations, so this is a totally reasonable reaction to a tower of seasonal gourds. haha. This picture kills me!

I'll leave you with this cute lil' pumpkin butt.

Do you have a giant pumpkin festival near you? How heavy was the the winner?

(I think I may have a burgeoning interest in giant produce!)

<3

Robbie

Field Trip: Thrifting.

Today, two friends and I went thrifting in a pretty sketchy part of town. We live just outside of Atlantic City, so you can imagine what a "bad neighborhood" looks like around here.

The 2 stores we went to were attached to/inside of a run down shopping mall, whose anchor stores are the DMV and the Food Bank of New Jersey. It's one of those places where the sales tax is lowered, so people will shop there. Regardless of the creepy depressing area, 2 of us really scored!!!! I got arm loads of treasures (that I'll be sharing in another post), and I spent less than $30!

During our little trip, we met a really cool old guy in vintage Lily Pulitzer pants and the coolest pair of sunglasses I had ever seen. And a shopkeeper almost cried because I commented on the quality of a handmade macrame frog; she was so upset that no one had bought it before me!

All-in-all, it was a good time. (If you ignore the crack house inspired fitting rooms and the meth addicted roofers). Check back to see what I got and to hear me ramble about all the handmade things I didn't buy.

<3

Robbie

Coming Up...

-The Never-Ending Braided Rug.

-A Work in Progress; The Bathroom.

-The First Roll of Film From My Diana Mini

-Acrylic Stash-busting + Vintage Craft: God's Eye

...and much more