Lowell and Son

Sweet Kitties – Some Valentine Love

2012-01-04T13:12:00.001-08:00

Christmas has past and I don’t know about you, but my kitty didn’t get anything from Santa in her stocking. I don’t know where the time went, I guess Santa was too busy making things for other people. My old kitty (sweet 16) was quite fortunate in 2011 however, so I think she will forgive me. She has had Hyperthyroid and kidney function problems for almost two years now. I give her medicine twice a week and feed her special food. In October she developed breathing problems. After a visit to the vet and a couple to the kitty emergency room they figured out that she had a severe urinary tract infection. After treating her with the proper medication she recovered quite quickly and began eating and drinking again and recovered her strength. I have to say that was a very scary time and I am even more sensitive to any unusual behavior in my kitty. I definitely treasure everyday I have with her.

New for 2012 – Heart fabric

Limited quantities of stripe fabric from 2011
available as fortune cookies only

This year we are offering Valentine Kitty toys again. If you like the prints we have this year be sure and pick up a set or two as they usually don’t make it to the next one. More varieties will be available, check back soon.

On the 2nd Day of Christmas...

2011-11-29T17:09:00.001-08:00

My true love gave to me... the cutest and happiest Fruitcake Plush by Deadly Sweet! Chock full of all the traditional fruitcake details, this is one fruitcake that you'd love to open up on Christmas morning- especially since you don't have to eat it.

This listing is for just one of the happy fruitcake plush, and also ships from Canada, so act quickly if you'd like to surprise that fruitcake lover in your life for the holidays!

To see more plush awesomeness by Deadly Sweet, click here.

Reposted from the Plush Team blog as part of our 12 Days of Christmas promotion. Stay tuned…my items will be posted on December 6th.

On the 1st Day of Christmas...

2011-11-28T23:39:00.001-08:00

My true love gave to me... a Pink Sparkle Robot made by Yermit! If you are looking for something for the robot lover in your life, a pink enthusiast, or just for a robot that likes to have a good time, look no further. Here she is in all her pink sparkly glory:

Available now in the Plush Team's etsy shop, this Robot is ready to party like it's 2099! This item ships from Canada, so if you are interested in getting her to a new home in time for Christmas (or New Year's), you'll have to act soon...

Pink Sparkle Robot dresses up a wine bottle.

To see more of the wonderful world of Yermit, click here.

Reposted from the Plush Team blog as part of our 12 Days of Christmas promotion. Stay tuned…my items will be posted on December 5th.

Have a Cool Yule!

2011-11-25T11:09:00.001-08:00

Yep, Cool Yule Scottie Dog is back this year. Last year I listed it as an exclusive in the Plush Team shop. This year I am selling it in my own shop with a NEW exclusive to Plush Team ornament coming Monday December 5th.

Glass Ball Photo Ornaments

2011-11-08T11:41:00.001-08:00

Due to numerous requests I have decided to make these again this year. Here are some sample photos and there are more in my Flickr album {CLICK HERE}

I have also added a new listing in my shop {CLICK HERE}

Halloween 2011

2011-09-22T10:53:00.001-07:00

I don’t generally do much for Halloween in my shop but this year I wanted to provide some fun and spooky toys for your kitties, some cuddly Halloween kitty plush for you and fun, glow in the dark eyes for your crafting enjoyment. Have a look…

NEW Items – Craft Eyes

2011-09-06T09:53:00.001-07:00

I have been a tad remiss in posting to my blog lately. So to begin anew I am posting some of my newest items of spring and summer.

Available sizes

Brown animal 12mm
Brown animal 15mm
Brown animal 18mm
Clear animal 12mm
Clear animal 15mm
Clear animal 18mm
Blue cat 12mm
Green cat 12mm
Orange cat 12mm
Green cat 15mm
Green cat 18mm
Orange cat 18mm
Blue cat 18mm
Black 12mm
Black 15mm
Black 18mm
Pink albino 15mm

I will be ordering more stock and will have more Orange 18mm cat eyes and will be adding 15mm Blue and Orange cat eyes to my shop.

Enter to win $1000 !!!

2011-04-04T16:33:00.001-07:00

You may be wondering why I am posting about a car auction and giveaway. Well, one of my three jobs is running the social networking for Park Place LTD in Bellevue, Washington.

This week is the Barrett-Jackson Palm Beach auction in Florida and we will have 7 cars there. The auction runs from April 7th to the 9th.

I would so appreciate it, even if you don’t want to enter personally, that you share this with your family and friends and give me a little hand getting the word out. Just click the photo below or HERE for details and a link to the contest page on Facebook.

Thank you in advance and GOOD LUCK!
Leslie @ Lowell and Son

Happy Etsyversary!

2011-02-28T22:39:00.001-08:00

Yes, it is our 3rd anniversary today or to be more exact it would be our 3rd anniversary on February 29th. Since we are a Leap Year shop we are celebrating it on the 28th/1st.

To kick off our 3rd year we are doing a giveaway. Since we have so many customers and fans who love kitties we are giving away a kitty toy. You may choose one kitty toy listing and you will receive it free including shipping to anywhere {on earth}. Here is what we have to offer:

Kitty Babies
Fishies
Kick Sticks
Clouds
Fortune Cookies
Chicken Nuggets
Hearts
Birds

Our kitty Lacey with a Kitty Baby

To see all your choices go to our Lowell and Son shop and have a look around. You may choose any fabric pattern{s}. Here are the rules:

1. Leave a comment here on my blog that you would like to be entered {1 entry}.
2. Leave a comment on our Facebook page that you would like to be entered {1 entry}.
3. Leave a comment on our Twitter page that you would like to be entered {1 entry}. Tweet #freekittytoy.

We will choose a winner by random online number generator and will announce the winner on March 13. Entries must be in by March 12th.

Good luck!
Leslie and Vaughan

Welcome to McDonald’s, May I Take Your Order?

2011-02-12T13:34:00.001-08:00

This is what you would get if your cat was in the car with you. This is our newest item, Fast Food Fun – 6 Plush Catnip Chicken Nuggets. It is hilarious to watch our cat Lacey playing with the chicken nuggets. They are so light that they go flying everywhere. They definitely will provide your kitty with lots of exercise.

Stay tuned…there may be fries in our future.

Rawr!!! Tigers Have Arrived

2011-02-09T14:54:00.001-08:00

My first order of business after purchasing this tiger print fleece was to make one of our kitties. I think our first one turned out great. I named him Bima after one of the twin Sumatran tiger cubs shown in the photo below. However, this tiger can be safely snuggled and taken with you where ever you go.

Bima and Mali (born May 25th 2010) live at the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, WA.

For more super cute photos of your favorite zoo animals go to Zoo Borns. Careful, they are addictive!

Simon’s Cat

2011-01-24T09:39:00.001-08:00

He is fabulous! We just discovered him the other day through another blog.

There is also a book out with another on the way. I will have to check those out too.

Available now

Coming in June 2011

Wrrrr.beeeeeep.squeeeek.wraaank

2011-01-21T13:51:00.001-08:00

Would this hat make me a COOL mom?

I think so…

How can a hat based on the character R2D2 from Star Wars not be cool?

Find in the Etsy shop of KnitLush
photo from KnitLush

Lucky Kitties

2011-01-19T11:40:00.001-08:00

I am super excited to announce that we are now selling catnip fortune cookies! I have been planning on adding them to my shop but with the busy Christmas season I have not had time till now to get them developed and a photo setup done. Our first offering is for Valentine’s Day. You even get the to-go container.

Lacey loves when we make a new toy. She gets to do a photo shoot and keep the toys for herself since she slobbers all over them.

We Love Siamese Kitties!

2011-01-17T13:47:00.001-08:00

All of our favorite Siamese kitties are back in the shop today. If you have been thinking of getting a Lowell and Son kitty now is the time. Things have slowed down after the holidays and I have time to create a kitty just for you.

Lacey – Seal Point

Sika – Dark Chocolate Point Vegas – Light Chocolate Point

Tolli - Mocha {made in Siamese style though not an actual Siamese color}

COMING SOON: I love my kitty – kitty toy giveaway for Valentine’s Day.

Around the USA in 30 Days

2011-01-12T22:29:00.001-08:00

The travels of an amigurumi squirrel.

What is the difference between a 9 and a 4? Take a look…

My poor little brown squirrel was innocently taken to the Post Office by his creator Moons Creations to be sent to me, and the Postal worker switched the 9 in my zip code with a 4, and there began his seemingly never ending loop around the USA. Now even if you write the address on the package correctly, the bar code printed by the post office takes precedence over it until someone realizes they have seen said package before and does something about it. It took and email and a phone call from me then a call from my post office to the post office in Allen Park, MI to stop my little squirrels travels, have the bar code crossed out, and have him delivered to me. A month later he finally made it and I have to say he was worth the wait. This is one example of why it is a good idea to use delivery confirmation.

Chicken Chow Mein and Mongolian Beef Please…

2011-01-10T22:55:00.001-08:00

What could I be doing with 50 Chinese takeout containers? Stay tuned. I found a great deal at the Cash & Carry. Thanks Stacy for having us go there.

Kindle, Goodreads and not getting any work done…

2011-01-05T10:25:00.001-08:00

I am so excited, I have a Kindle on the way! Or being shipped shortly anyway. I ordered the 3G + Wifi model, I am not sure I really need the 3G but thought if I ever wanted to sell it that the 3G would make it more desirable. I am not sure why Amazon takes a few days to ship these out unless this is just because I chose Super saver shipping. Anyhow, I have to WAIT but in the meantime I have been spending way too much time online looking for FREE books and checking out websites dedicated to the e-book. Do YOU have a Kindle? If so, feel free to share your tips and hints and favorite websites related to the Kindle. I would love to see them. Below I will post what I have discovered so far.

Goodreads {discovered through the Plush Team} Feel free to “friend” me.
Amazon Kindle {Facebook page}
Pixel of Ink {facebook, blogger and twitter}
Books on the Knob {blogger}

I hope to hear from you all soon! Also, has this model of Kindle done anything surprising for you? My niece said she could get on Facebook with hers. Has anyone gotten onto Etsy with theirs? That could come in handy to check my shop away from home since I don’t have a smart phone or 3G/4G laptop.

I Love My Kitty

2011-01-02T20:12:00.001-08:00

Do you? Customers are really surprised by how much fun their kitties have playing with our kitty babies. It is a larger toy but tons of fun to play with hug and pal around with.

Brand NEW: I Love My Kitty – Valentine Stripe Kitty Baby.

Our kitty Lacey – Official model and tester

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T14:41:00.001-08:00

With the New Year comes new catnip toys for your kitty from Lowell and Son. We are starting off with Valentine treats for your favorite fur ball.

Two returning favorites from last year are our Valentine Plush Catnip Hearts and Valentine Catnip Fishies. More items will be coming soon, including new Kitty Babies.

Happy in Hawaii

2010-12-21T10:54:00.001-08:00

This kitty is crazy about her Perfect Gentleman Kitty Baby. I love receiving photos from my customers showing their kitties playing with their new Lowell and Son toys. Here is are our latest, straight from Hawaii. The big plush grey kitty in the photo is Wicket, that belongs to “mom”. Wicket sure looks a lot like the real kitty…

So, if you have purchased kitty toys from us and would like to email me some photos of your kitty playing with them I will definitely do a blog post with your pictures. Obviously we LOVE kitties! Send to: lowellandson@comcast.net

A Stocking for your Kitty

2010-10-24T11:22:00.001-07:00

Our first kitty stocking is ready! Since we make all kinds of toys for your kitty we thought we should offer a stocking for Santa to fill at Christmas time. Every kitty loves to receive some treats and a new toy. Our first offering is this frosty pink stocking with our Groovy Kitty in white. Personalization is included. More colors to come…

Santa Loves Kitties Too

2010-10-20T07:40:00.001-07:00

I don’t know about your kitties, but our kitty loves getting something special in her stocking from Santa. Every year she gets a fresh bag of kitty treats and a new toy.

This year we are offering lots of choices for holiday catnip toys and will soon be offering some fun and sparkly kitty stockings too. Stay tuned…

Today we are featuring our holiday Kitty Babies.

Sweet Tooth

Cool Yule – will be available exclusively in the Plush Team shop in November.

Deck the Halls

Christmas Plaid

Baby it’s Cold Outside

A Little Something Different

2010-10-17T15:50:00.001-07:00

For almost a year I have had the idea in my head, and a little sketch lying about, to make a sailboat Christmas ornament. I finally got around to it and really like how it turned out. I can almost hear those gulls crying. My inspiration is the Christmas Boat Parade on Lake Union in Seattle. There is nothing more fun than a boat draped in holiday cheer.

The perfect ornament for husband, boyfriend or Dad.

Photo from Flickr

Plush Halloween Goodness

2010-10-04T08:36:00.001-07:00

Here at Lowell and Son we typically don’t do a whole lot in the shop for Halloween. This year I decided to offer lite Halloween fare and have some great black cats available. These are great for Halloween or any time of year for that matter.

Echo – Glow in the dark eyes and stitching

Echo in the dark

Boris

Copernicus

Franklin

Talbot

Tasha

Kitty Catnip Toy Photo Shoot

2010-09-16T10:38:00.001-07:00

Along with making lots of new catnip toys I figured I better get some new photos of my kitty Lacey playing with them. She went totally berserk when I was taking photos of just the toys so she was happy to get in on the action. She may be 16 but is still a kitten at heart.

New Teacher’s Pet Catnip Fishy

New Teacher’s Pet Kitty Baby

New Sweet Tooth Kitty Baby for Christmas

New Deck the Halls Kitty Baby for Christmas

Our July Trip to the Zoo

2010-08-28T11:07:00.001-07:00

We had so much fun going to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle this last July. I had not visited the zoo in a long time so it was nice seeing all the new exhibits.

Sleepy Bear
There is a plexi-glass window in this bear’s den (where the bear moved after this pic was taken). I actually could feel the heat through the plexi when the bear was lying in there, a mere two inches between us.

Surfacing Hippo

Meerkats are such strange creatures

They always look as if they are posing

A cool rock on a very hot day

Christmas 2010

2010-08-23T15:26:00.001-07:00

We have been busy coming up with great new designs for this year as well as bringing back all of last years favorites. Here are a some more of our newest for you to take a look at. They are all listed in our shop LowellandSon. I have also signed up with Picnik and am now using them to edit my photos. I hope you enjoy the new look.

Retro Reindeer

Gold Glitter Retro Reindeer
{Inspired by my vintage flocked reindeer collection}

Holiday Black Bird

Holiday Blue Bird

Holiday Cardinal

Holiday Goldfinch

Garden Chickadee

2010-08-12T14:46:00.001-07:00

A brand new ornament design for 2010! The Garden Chickadee is just one of the many ornaments to come in my Nature series. This series, as the title implies, is inspired by nature and created from felt in very natural tones. Check my shop often for new ornaments as well as my plush kitties and bears.

Lowell and Son

Christmas is Coming!

2010-08-02T22:23:00.001-07:00

The Lowell & Son workshop is now open and ready to roll. In order to be prepared for the busy Christmas season I have to design my new ornaments now. Here is a peek a couple of my new designs for this year. To see my 2009 designs check out my Ornament section to the right. If you want to order any now just send me a convo through my shop.

Retro Reindeer in Pink on Snowy White

Retro Reindeer in White on Icy Blue

Country Village

2010-07-28T17:09:00.001-07:00

Bothell, Washington

Yesterday my son and I took a wee trip down the local highway to a cute little place called Country Village. Country Village is a combination of many kinds of stores from a fabric store to a toy store. Vaughan’s favorite thing to do there is eat a bowl of Penne noodles and butter at Papa’s Place, one of a couple restaurants in the complex. Our other favorite things to do there are to feed the ducks and get fresh kettle corn.

Quite the friendly fellow.

This adorable duck hung out next to me the whole time

We tried to keep this big guy at a distance.

Happy Father’s Day!

2010-06-20T11:43:00.001-07:00

Awesome Elementary School Concert

2010-06-08T23:36:00.001-07:00

My son (who is in sixth grade) has been playing trumpet in the Elementary School band since the beginning of the school year. He began in the first year band group (consisting of mostly 5th graders) and played with them up until May of this year. He had been struggling with his playing for a while and just couldn’t get the trumpet to do what he liked. We decided that he should start taking private lessons and boy am I glad we did. After just two lessons he asked his band director if he could try out for the second year band and he made it! I am so proud of him and so thankful to his private instructor Glenn (Glenn’s Trumpet Notes). My son is one of four trumpet players in the second year group.

He has signed up to be in the band in Jr. High this next school year, I am sure he will have great fun with it.

In the video below they are playing William Tell.

Almost Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-26T11:18:00.001-07:00

I can’t wait until June 13th!!!!

Need I say more?

Off to Roslyn, WA

2010-05-14T00:16:00.001-07:00

It is once again time for my first trip of the year to Roslyn for a late Mother’s Day visit. I will see my parents, brother and sister (from Yakima). I have plans to help my mom in the garden (I am delivering some mini roses she left in my care) and to spend some time visiting with my sister. My brother, my son and I will be going to see Iron Man 2 at the little local theater. This will be super fun as I have never seen a show there.

Roslyn Theater

Roslyn Cafe mural made “famous” by Northern Exposure

The local “radio station” from the Northern Exposure TV show.

The Brick Tavern. I think I have been in there twice. My sister worked there for a short time many, many years ago. I preferred The Pastime Tavern for hanging out (back before the kid).

The Pastime Tavern

I will try and get some pics while I am gone and will report on any interesting happenings when I return. Have a great weekend everyone.

Fun for Shelter Kitties

2010-05-12T09:21:00.001-07:00

I recently sold some catnip fishies to a volunteer at Purfect Pals, a local Arlington cat sanctuary. They also have adoption centers around the area in places such as Petsmart and Petco stores. If you are looking to adopt a kitty and live in the Seattle area take a look at their website, they may have just the kitty for you. I know as soon as my son turns 13 we will be going to volunteer, he really wants to help out.

My customer sent me some photos of a shelter kitty playing with its new toy and I wanted to share them with you.

MEOW

Sounds of Nature

2010-05-05T12:59:00.001-07:00

I was suddenly inspired today to go in search of some nature sounds I could put on my Garden blog, The Tiny Garden. I first searched the internet for FREE nature sounds but most of the recordings were so short it would not be worth the bother. I then remembered about my Playlist account so I hopped over there and searched “nature sounds” and found some great stuff and they were plenty long. Right now I am listening to Flower Meadow. This recording features bird and insect noise along with a light background of babbling brook. If I close my eyes I I feel like I am lying on a blanket with the sun shining down on my face. Ahhh, a great improvement from the rainy day I can see out the window.

Photo by Mace2000 on Flickr

Bamboo Pen and Touch Tablet

2010-05-04T00:00:00.001-07:00

A light bulb went off over my head the other day. Isabella, who I watch after school, said that she wished she could write a letter to her pen pal on the computer. Not just type it, write it. It got me thinking…

I did a quick internet search and found the Wacom Bamboo series of products and I really, really want the CTH460 for some awesome editing flexibility that I don’t currently have. I would think the my son and Isabella would have some great fun with it as well, drawing and doodling and all kinds of stuff. Maybe my son would enjoy drawing his cartoons on the computer. This particular tablet costs about 99.00 (plus tax in WA.). Not too bad considering all you can do with it. Here is what you get. I recommend watching the product tour (link below), it really gives you an idea of what it can do. My version of Photoshop is older than the one included so it might be nice to have a newer copy, but with or without it I would still be interested in the product.

Nik Color Efex Pro 3.0 WE3 for selectively applying lighting and photo enhancements with the pen

Pressure-sensitive pen tip for natural pen and brush strokes

Adobe Photoshop Elements 7.0 Win/6.0 Mac for editing, retouching, enhancing and sharing digital photos

Manufacturer Product Tour

Here are a some places you can find the tablet:

Amazon
Tiger Direct
Best Buy

Most of the reviews I have read say that the tablet is worth the price. I guess the touch pad isn’t quite up to snuff but overall it sounds like a great product. If any of my readers have used one of these let me know what you think. I guess now I better go check my PayPal balance!

Some Tough Blog Love

2010-04-29T09:09:00.001-07:00

In an effort to clean up my blog folowing I decided to remove any blogs from my list that have had no activity in the last two months. I know it is harsh, but hey, I am doing my best to blog at least every week or two, or more on both my blogs so you just gotta keep up.

photo by hmmlargeart on Flickr

You would be surprised how difficult it was for me to figure out how to remove someone {or maybe you wouldn’t, ha ha}. So I thought I would post this as a little tutorial on how to give someone the axe. After bumbling around my dashboard and clicking on the manage blogs button and not finding anything that said “delete” or “do not follow” or anything of the like, I went to the Blogger help button and searched for my answer there. I checked out quite a few forum posts before finally finding the answer I needed. So here you go…some tough love {I am using a blog of my own that is mainly inactive and used for selling assorted craigslist and garage sale stuff for an example}.

1. Go to your dashboard and click on the blue “MANAGE” button. 2. Here is where you will end up.

3. Right click on “settings” next to the blog you would like to delete. I use the right click and open in new window because it takes less time to perform the task then if you just click the “settings” button directly.

4. Now here is where I got stuck. If the below screen does not come up you will need to click on the “Google” button and log in again. Then the screen will want to close itself, you click on yes.

5. Now you are ready to delete. Right click on settings again and the above screen will open. You just click on “Stop following this site” which is in blue over to the right of the window. The window will then close itself and you click yes. That is it, they are GONE.

Tootie the Kitten Travels the World

2010-04-22T08:46:00.001-07:00

I should be jealous, Tootie has traveled WAY more than I have in my whole life! The only other country I have ever been to is Canada. Maybe someday I can see the places Tootie has. I hope these two Tooties enjoy their new homes abroad.

Tootie in Moscow Russia

Tootie in the United Kingdom
Surrey to be exact

Not to be outdone…Ash got to go live in Scotland

Place your Vote!

2010-04-13T22:46:00.001-07:00

Members of the Plush Team have been hard at work creating awesome things for our newest challenge. Click PT Stitchy below and help determine the winner of the World Mythology Challenge!

Here's how it works:

Participants in the Challenge had a choice of entering into one of four categories:

Gods and Goddesses (i.e. Osiris, Egyptian god of the Underworld, a.k.a. the God with the Golden Gun)

Demigods and Mortals (i.e. Achilles, the man who proved everybody has a weakness)

Magical Creatures (i.e. Oni, Japanese ogres who like to snack on children’s belly buttons, or at least that’s what Japanese mommies who want their children to behave say)

Magical Artifacts (i.e. Thor’s hammer, a weapon powerful enough to drive a god to dress in drag)

Click PT Stitchy for the full details on our Plush Team blog.

I Love Fluffy Flowers

2010-03-30T11:49:00.001-07:00

Last month our little hamster Benjamin Buntons went to live with Felicia at Fluffy Flowers. In return her Taylor Ballerina came to live with me. I chose Taylor because of her sunny color and ballet tutu accented with garden green. She definitely brightens up my office on cloudy days.

Benjamin Buntons enjoys reading Captain Underpants

Taylor Ballerina (listing pic)

Taylor Ballerina hanging out in my office with boy stuff, she definitely does not want to live in my son’s room with all the monsters.

This Weeks New Items

2010-03-26T13:14:00.001-07:00

I have been busy this week preparing items for a store order. Kitty catnip toys were requested this time as well as my regular plush so I have come up with a bunch of new fish and mice that I can list in my shop as well. Oh, and I have done some new plush that are not for kitties so check them out too.

Yesterday I ordered 225 pairs of craft eyes. I will have plenty of blue, green and orange eyes for kittens after I receive them so check back for more kitten choices. I also have many more kitty toy choices in the wings to list, something for every kitty.

Bubbles Catnip Kitty Baby

Catnip Clouds – On Cloud 9

Sleepy Flower Mouse – Catnip Toy
{not yet listed}

Sleepy Leopard Mouse – Catnip Toy

Sunkissed Catnip Fishies

Plush Kitty Cat Millie – Spring Flowers

Fiona the Pink Kitten

Tootie the White Kitten

For all you garden lovers out there who have not seen my garden blog yet, pop over and take a look. Now that I have been out in the yard and gotten some work done I have taken tons of photos and I will be posting a little more regularly.

The Tiny Garden

Time for a Change?

2010-03-25T11:00:00.001-07:00

I typically have long brown hair most of the time. I do color it myself on occasion with non permanent color. A couple years ago I colored my hair red. Right after I rinsed it out and took a good look at it I freaked out. It was very bright and not exactly what I was expecting. I have to say, be very careful when coloring your hair if you already have some blonde highlights. Red hair color will turn them somewhat pink/burgundy in color. After washing my hair maybe five times that day to get some of the color out I finally calmed down a bit. I told my husband before he got home that I colored my hair and to try and not be too shocked when he saw it. Surprisingly he really liked it as well as my friends who saw it later on. I lucked out that time.

I was sitting in Hairmasters the other day while my son was getting his hair cut. I began flipping through Beauty Launchpad magazine and spied the most awesome hair color in a photo of a Joico employee. I absolutely love Peacock greens and blues and had never seen them used on hair. THIS is the color I want to try next. Most likely I would have all over color done in dark brown and then use the green and blue as accents in the front. I don’t think I want quite as much color as on the model below {click photos to go to Joico website}.

Hmmm, something to think about...

Fresh Spring Bookmarks

2010-03-23T00:22:00.001-07:00

Anyone that has ordered one of our super wonderful items can tell you that they received at least one of our handy bookmark business cards along with it. I was at the craft store the other day and just could not help buying a new 8x8 pack of scrapbook papers in the most fabulous colors and patterns. So we have a great selection of new bookmarks for all our spring and summer buyers.

If you plan on making a purchase…please let us know if you would like extra bookmarks for your children or friends and we would be happy to include them in your package.

Just a sample of some of the great new papers we have

A pic before I used my corner punch to round the edges of the bookmarks. Oooh, they are all glittery.

Fresh Bits from Lowell and Son

2010-03-17T10:24:00.001-07:00

Wow, after a month long absence I am finally back. I had been having some computer troubles and I ended up having a bad hard drive {I did recover all my data, yay}. I decided that after 7 years I should go ahead and get myself a new computer. I am now up and running faster than ever before and am back to my blogs. Below is a sample of what I have been working on lately. I have plenty of toys for your kitty and new plush kitties and owls in fun spring colors {click photo to see item in my shop}.

Spring Chick door hanger

Tip Toe Through the Flowers – Kitty Baby Catnip Toy

Modelicious Kitty Baby – Catnip Toy

Swirls Kitty Baby – Catnip Toy

Tomorrow: The new computer!

Da ta da! And the Winner is!

2010-02-13T20:23:00.001-08:00

We have finally chosen the winner of our kitty names contest. Thanks to everyone for submitting all 114 names for us to chose from. There were so many that my son could not choose just one, so we picked 35 favorites, tossed them in a bowl and drew one out. The lucky winner is Max E. Pad, belonging to Denise of Yummy Pancake! I just LOVE his name, totally original.

{Max and the famous Mr. Toastee}

{Max after a rough night, hee hee}

Denise has chosen as her kitty prize, Cafe Mocha kitty. A Lowell and Son classic. Now I need to begin sorting through all the names and matching them up to their plush counterparts. As I name each one I will go ahead and post it here for all to see.

My First Wordless Wednesday

2010-02-10T12:38:00.001-08:00

{click to see on Flickr}

The Evil Mr. Lady

2010-02-09T17:31:00.001-08:00

A few weeks ago I started a contest to gather kitty names. One of those entries was the Evil Mr. Lady here. The owner of Mr. Lady is fellow Plush Team member Christina Ward of Christina Ward Creatures. Mr. Lady tickled my fancy so I just had to make a plush twin of her. I have grand plans to make more plush kitty twins of other kitties who’s photos I have collected, so keep your eyes on our shop and check the Plush Kitty Twins section for new additions. LowellandSon

Speaking of my contest, my son will be picking a winner in the next couple days from our HUGE list of 114 names. Winner will receive a free plush kitty of their choice. So stay tuned!

Pullip Fever

2010-01-31T23:57:00.001-08:00

I went and did it, I got a Pullip doll. I purchased the one below from Pullip Style. Her name is Zuora. Her clothes are not my favorite but I love her hair and eyes. So I will be in search of some new clothes after I get her and maybe some wigs to change out her look. She is also available at The Valley of Dolls for the same price but the shipping would have been $15.00 compared to $3.95 at Pullip Style, quite a difference for the same service.

I also found a Flickr group dedicated to just this particular doll. It is called PullipPedia-Zuora, it is interesting to see what others have done to customize their dolls. {Please note: none of the following photos are mine, click on each photo to go to it’s respective page on Flickr}

photo by BlackDrops Dolls

Poppy by Astrihol

Mosaic by Thylaylii

Now I have to sit here and wait, argh!!!!!

Show Your Kitty Some Lovin’

2010-01-30T11:46:00.001-08:00

Valentine’s Day is almost upon us so you better hurry and get your kitty’s gift ordered up. You know how those cats like to plot their revenge when they don’t get what they want. Meow…

Yep, I am having some more fun with mosaics. This one shows all the kitty catnip toys I have made so far. All are available in my shop Lowell and Son.

Pillow Tee Monster Premier

2010-01-28T22:25:00.001-08:00

Yes it is finally here! The Pillow Tee Monster. Part pillow, part tee and part monster all mashed into one super cuddly creation. Snuggle with it on the couch, cuddle it in bed, drool on it in the car during long road trips, the Pillow Tee Monster is ready for anything.

This particular monster is our first and is created from one of the many t-shirts that my son has grown out of (he refuses to stop growing to my dismay). I have set aside only the coolest and funniest of the lot and will proceed give them new life and new homes.

Pillow Tee Monster – Camp Itchalot
$18.00 pillow insert not included but available for purchase seperately

Kitty Photo Shoot

2010-01-26T10:33:00.001-08:00

Here is a mosaic of Lacey during the many catnip toy photo shoots we have done together. This is her favorite part of her job as a kitty spokesperson. The center photo is Lacey’s Plush alter ego. I find it quite funny that she seems to be staring down both the catnip bird and mouse. As you can see, the only toy she turned her nose up at were the dog toys {bottom center}. She was only in the listing to show scale as I don’t have a dog.

{Mosaic made on Big Huge Labs}

On my garden blog today, The Naughty Blue Jay.

A Call for Kitty Names - Contest

2010-01-11T18:49:00.001-08:00

Contest runs from January 11th until Midnight Pacific Time on January 31st.

I need your help! I am doing a wee bit of re-vamping in my shop and would like to give each of my kitties a name of it’s own instead of just naming it by it’s color. If you have a kitty that somewhat resembles one of my designs (or even if you don’t) just comment with your kitties name and which plush it most closely resembles. Maybe you will end up with a plush named after your kitty. My son will choose the most interesting (in his opinion) kitty name and the winner will receive their choice of one LowellandSon kitty for free (including shipping, sorry USA only). Make sure you leave contact information if you cannot be reached via your blog page.

{numbered 1-12 beginning on the top left. My son and Kevin the Monster in the center}

1. Leopard {obviously won’t match any real kitties but I would love some interesting suggestions}.
2. Cafe Mocha kitty
3. White with green eyes
4. Sorry, this kitty is named already
5. Charcoal Gray and Cream w/ green eyes
6. Charcoal Gray with orange/yellow silvery eyes
7. Black kitty with orange/yellow eyes
8. Charcoal kitty with blue eyes
9. Brown kitty (Burmese)
10. Charcoal Gray with green eyes
11. Chocolate Dots Kitty {any suggestions?}
12. White with blue eyes

Not pictured:

13. Charcoal Gray and cream w/ blue eyes
14. Charcoal Gray and cream w/orange/yellow eyes
15. Black kitty with blue eyes
16. Black kitty with green eyes
17. Medium Gray with blue eyes
18. Medium Gray with green eyes

If your kitty color and/or eye color is not mentioned here please feel free to suggest a new kitty design. Sorry to those who have orange/ginger, tortoise shell or kitties with spots or stripes, I do not yet get that into detail on my plush kitties and there is no decent orange colored fleece to be found.

We look forward to getting tons of great kitty names. Please feel free to send us photos of your kitty as well. You can either give us the link to your photo (on Flickr for example) attach it to a convo, or email it to us (lowellandson@comcast.net).

Here is our newest LowellandSon kitty Sika. Sika was a super Siamese kitty we had when I was a kid.

Some Valentine Kitty Love

2010-01-04T21:53:00.001-08:00

I think I have finally recovered from the Christmas rush and have now put my sights on coming up with a couple Valentine’s items for my shop. Themed plush kitties have never done well so I decided to concentrate on cat toys. Who does not love their kitty enough to get them Valentine catnip hearts? Stuffed with fresh, potent catnip and polyfil and then spritzed with catnip spray before packaging, these will get cats of any age zipping around the house for a little while at least.

If you think your boy cats will turn their noses up at the “girly” hearts here are some Tough Guy Tom Cat Catnip Fish, perfect for those manly cats out there. If you would like hearts done in Tough Guy prints please do convo me a request.

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New year. Stay tuned for the results of our Plush Team Secret Santa Plush Swap. I have completed and mailed out my creation today and am waiting patiently for my goodies to arrive. I will post both what I made and what I receive when the “transaction” is complete.

Perfectly Penguin

2009-12-07T09:37:00.001-08:00

Today, just for my niece Austin (who is a bit of a penguin nut), I am posting a feature on penguins. So here you go Austin, some penguins on my blog!

Click on photo to go to each items Etsy listing if you wish.

Monster Penguin by mydeardarling

Little Red Penguin earrings by zosterops

Penguin with Red Scarf – by allthingssmall

Penguin Cup by miekongo

Baby Penguin Pendant by lavieillustree

I Want it Wednesday - Christmas Wreath

2009-11-25T11:27:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas! Well, not quite but Christmas is my favorite holiday ever so I could not resist introducing Christmas items into my “I Want it Wednesday” posts. During QVC’s Christmas in July event I purchased the wreath below. This wreath is great. You can choose for the lights to twinkle or glow steady. If you put the wreath outside you can pick the photo sensor mode and the wreath will turn on at dusk and off at dawn or you can chose the 6 hour timer mode. {click photos to go to respective websites}

Bethlehem Lights Solutions – Pre-lit Wreath
Battery operated with timer {$29.92}

This next wreath is from the newest Pottery Barn catalog. I love the cypress foliage but I just can’t pay $99.00 for a wreath that will die. I do, however, love the butterflies and will be stopping in at Pottery Barn next time I go to the mall and get myself some.

Cypress wreath from Pottery Barn {$99.00} with butterflies, sold separately.

I think these butterflies will look great attached to my new pre-lit wreath along with some other items such as coordinating floral picks from the craft store.

Glitter Butterfly Ornaments {$8.00-$10.00}

What’s in the Loo?

2009-11-19T21:12:00.001-08:00

In an attempt to post more often I am kicking off a new, reoccurring theme today, “What’s in the Loo.” Yes you guessed it…what is on my bathroom counter at the time I blog.

Today it is “Martha Stewart Living” November 2009. One of my favorite articles in this issue is Glitter Painting {p. 152-159}. This involves lots of glitter but the effect is so super sparkly and I cannot resist anything sparkly! They also supply a photo-conversion tool to make your photo more like a paint by numbers so it can be glitter painted. Click the link above or any of the photos to see how to make your own glitter painting.

Brownie the Gerbil 2007 – 2009

2009-11-18T10:46:00.001-08:00

Our little gerbil Brownie passed away Monday of a sudden, unexplained illness at the age of 2 1/2. My son and I will miss her always along with her sister Grr who passed away this summer. Every time I walk into my son’s room I notice her absence. I really miss the sound of her running on her wheel. Our dwarf hamster Snicker is our only remaining rodent friend.

I hope Brownie is up in gerbil heaven running around like a spaz with her sister.

I’m Dreaming of a Sparkly Christmas

2009-11-15T11:36:00.001-08:00

Happy Sunday! I am sure many of us bloggers out there have been quite absent lately. I think this is the longest gap between posts that I have ever had. This year I added felt Christmas ornaments to my line-up and the response from Etsy buyers has been wonderful. So wonderful that I have just not had enough time to post. Also, I think my plush are getting a little jealous, the ornaments have really taken over. I have also received an order from a gallery/boutique for 10-20 of my ornaments and some plush too. I better get BUSY! I better sew ornaments all next year to be more prepared for Christmas 2010, yes I am thinking of next Christmas already.

I have received quite a few custom requests, the photos below are my latest. My customer requested designs on Victorian shoe shapes for a Christmas present for her mother. She just provided samples of the shape and told me to decorate it however I wanted. I have no plans to add these to my shop this year, maybe next season. I do have plans to add the reindeer to my regular line-up on the circle shaped ornaments. I really hope she likes these!

Bookmark Business Cards

2009-10-29T08:57:00.001-07:00

So, my needle square envelope has been made and there is a little pile of scrap laying there. What to do? Make a bookmark business card! A bookmark is not something a customer who reads is just going to toss into the recycling. They will put it in their book and think of you every time they pick it up.

You can pretty much make the bookmark any size you want, I chose 2” x 6” {the same size of the brown paper stock bookmarks I purchased previously}. This is also the perfect size to cut from what you would have left after using a 8” x 8” piece of paper. So, grab your paper, cut it with your handy paper cutter or ruler and craft knife. Print what you want on the back {obviously you have to use paper that is blank on the back, if it is a double sided print you can just affix a label with your info. on one side} or just send with a written thank you. Then use a “Silent Setter” or hole punch to make a little hole in the top of the strip of paper, put some ribbon through the hole, round the corners with a corner punch {if you wish} and viola! You are done.

Envelope for my Needle Squares

Bookmarks made of “scrap” paper
My business info printed on the bookmark

You will find that you may have some more scraps that are pretty little. I had just purchased a super cool Fiskars circle punch {1.5”} and went ahead and punched circles out of what was left. These I printed my shop name and address on. Another idea which I have started to utilize is taking very short inspirational quotes and printing them on the circles. A fun little something extra to put in with the bookmark.

Of course you don’t have to use scrap to make your bookmarks or the little circle cards. Feel free to go nuts and cut a whole sheet of paper into strips or circles. These are fun extras for those of us that maybe don’t have zillions of sales and can do this type of work ourselves. Or, hmmm, they could be fun stocking stuffers, teacher gifts, gifts for your child's friends etc… Use some Christmas paper and convert them into gift tags too. Eeeek, can I make the day maybe 28 hours long?

To print on both the bookmark and the circles I create a Photodraw (use your favorite software) document with the text I want and print it to a piece of paper, then I use double sided removable tape to adhere the bookmark and circles in the correct place on the paper and then run it back through the printer. Occasionally the paper will slip but this method works great for me. I purposefully purchased a Canon printer because it draws the paper from the top and straight out the front reducing the chance for items to get jammed as can happen with an HP printer.

Frost ……

2009-10-26T23:36:00.001-07:00

Imagine a sunny, crisp winter day. Bright snow and icy blues, brrrr. Thank you so much to Etsy’s DishRagRescue for including my Snow Bird Needle Square – Holiday Sparkle in Icy Blue in her Frost treasury.

Scrap Paper Envelopes

2009-10-23T13:18:00.001-07:00

After listing my new Needle Squares in my Etsy shop I thought it would be nice to provide a re-useable envelope to go along with them {at no extra charge}. I cannot call myself a scrap booker by any means as I rarely make any pages these days, but I do LOVE the paper. I cannot resist buying paper even if I am not sure what I will use it for. These envelopes are one great way to use it. I altered a free template I found on the internet, printed it out and then just lightly traced it on the back of the chosen paper. I cut it out, scored the dotted fold lines {with the dull side of a pairing knife}, folded and taped down the inside flap. The outside flap gets a wee piece of sticky Velcro to hold it closed and make it so it can be used over and over.

Cute mushroom paper for the Wee Mushroom Needle Square

As you can imagine, after an envelope is made there is some left over paper. The above paper is 8” x 8”. I can only get one envelope from that size leaving quite a scrap piece. From that scrap I can get a book mark and a couple circle punches. Check in later to see what I do with those leftovers.

Get the envelope template, click HERE.

To be continued…

LowellandSon Plush FOR Your Kitty!

2009-10-18T15:34:00.001-07:00

Today we debut our Set of 3 Plush Catnip Fishies. What happens to the bits of fleece that are not big enough to make a Monster Kitty? We are making toys out of them!

Available today in Dots and Swirls with Christmas patterns coming soon, these fish will fulfill your kitty’s catnip desires. Both stuffed and sprayed with catnip they will drive them wild. It was all I could do to keep my kitty out of the photo shoot.

Lacey our product tester.

Tank Tops, Armpits and Tattoos

2009-10-14T15:19:00.001-07:00

If that isn’t a title that grabs you I don’t know what is. Today's post is about our little day trip to Port Townsend, WA on August 19th.

Now I just have to give my opinion about a few things.
1. Waitresses really should not wear tank tops when working in a restaurant unless perhaps they are in the Bahamas.
2. Waitresses really, really should not wear tank tops if they don’t shave their pits.

I apologize in advance to anyone that lives in Port Townsend, but the place is kind of a den of hippies and natural folk, I have never smelled so much patchouli in my life. Now to explain my opinions above. We arrived in Port Townsend and were all starved (me, my husband and my 11 year old son) so we immediately searched out a good place to eat lunch. We chose a place that looked like the locals hung out in (the bar part anyway) and sat in the dining room. Our waitress was a pretty, young gal wearing, yes you guessed it, a tank top. She gave us our menus and took our drink order. My son then leaned over to me and whispered “She has armpit hair.” So of course when she came back we all had to try and take a look without looking like we were taking a look, and yes she was all natural. Seriously, if you don’t want to shave please wear a shirt that covers your pits when you are working, ugh. I don’t want any guys hairy armpits exposed to me either so nothing personal.

Now you are thinking, hmm she mentioned tattoos in the title. Yes I did! A little bit later my son leans over to me again and whispers, “She has an inappropriate tattoo on her arm.” Geeze, what could a girl tattoo on her arm that would be inappropriate? Hmmm, yes I think those are boobies I see, on a naked woman, on her upper arm. Now my son has inadvertently seen boobs before, we have cable. We do make attempts to not expose him to stuff like that, there will be plenty of time for that when he gets older. Cripes, I can handle changing channels or closing an art book or whatever to try and not expose him to stuff like that but how do you avoid a naked woman tattoo on someone's arm? It is right there and unavoidable. I am sure every boys eyes pop out that eats in that place. What open minded bosses this gal must have.

So anyhow, we did enjoy our visit despite all the exposure in the restaurant. I enjoyed the galleries and a wood carving shop. I wished the automotive antique shop was open when we were there, there was lots of cool stuff we could see through the window.

My favorite thing was desert. We went to Elevated Ice Cream and I chose Triple Citrus Italian Ice. After my husband and son tasted it they wished that was what they got. It was so incredibly refreshing and not too sweet, similar to sorbet but less sugar. We went and sat in the shade by the water and enjoyed our treat while gazing at the wonderful view and smelling the salty sea air.

{ Old ferry dock}

{Neat old entry door what used to be the cannery}

{Another cannery door, facing the water}

{Back of the restaurant where we had lunch, the floors above are a hotel}

{Riding back home on the ferry between Kingston and Edmonds}

{The guys up on the ferry deck}

Tutorial – Chinese Lantern Wreath

2009-10-13T09:19:00.001-07:00

For those of you that don’t read my garden blog, I am reposting my wreath tutorial here for you to see. This is a super easy project and looks really cool. Now I gotta go dig through the under-the-stairs closet for my Halloween decorations and get busy! ~ Leslie

This wreath is perfect for Halloween as well as fall in general. I saw this wreath project in a magazine a few years ago and just loved it, obviously enough to make it for myself. I think it was from Martha Stewart. Here is what you do, it is SUPER easy.

Buy a twig wreath – any size
Spray paint it black, front and back {do this outside}
Buy a couple stems of Chinese Lantern flower from the craft store when you get the wreath (Michaels and Joann both carry this item). Snip the lanterns off and hot glue them, here and there, to the wreath.
Hang from a 3M removable hook on your door or wherever you want.
I store my wreath in a large plastic bag hanging on the wall in my garage. This prevents breakage.

This project can be changed up for ANY holiday. I have been planning on making one for Christmas. I would spray the wreath silver and place glitzy bits like floral picks or Christmas ornaments and decorations. You can never have too much sparkle during the holidays.

The finished product

Chinese Lantern flower
Photo by Ali on Flickr {click photo to see photo stream}

Holiday’s Here I Come!

2009-10-08T22:51:00.001-07:00

Christmas is my absolute FAVORITE holiday of the year. I have tons of decorations and place at least 4 trees 4ft or taller and many more that are little 2 footers all around my home. I collect glittered and flocked reindeer and just about anything Christmas kitsch. I also love birds when it comes to Christmas decor so this Snow Bird needle square has been my favorite so far. Though don’t limit the use of this little item to just Christmas time, it can add sparkle to your sewing basket all year long.

My favorite detail is the clear seed bead '”ice” on the branch

IN THE WORKS: a Christmas ornament featuring this cute little bird.

A Special Kitty

2009-10-08T10:10:00.001-07:00

On occasion I am asked to make a Monster Kitty to resemble a customer’s own kitty. Whether your kitty is still with you causing havoc and mayhem or has passed away, a custom Monster Kitty is the perfect way to always remember that special member of your family. Below is Giovanni, my latest custom kitty, notice the single white whisker on each side and the yellow/green eyes (hand painted special for this kitty). There are always little things that can be done to make a Monster Kitty yours alone. Please feel free to convo me anytime with a photo and I can let you know if your kitty can be a Monster Kitty.

Giovanni Gabrieli ~ 1991-2009

Giovanni the Monster Kitty

1000th Sale - Yummy Pancake Giveaway!

2009-10-02T15:08:00.001-07:00

Congratulations to Denise of Yummy Pancake on her 1000th sale (now 1007), that is quite the achievement and a ton of crocheting. To enter her giveaway, go to her blog and comment as to what your favorite Yummy Pancake creation is. I chose….

Plush bottle of Jagermeister, drunken Mr. Toastee not included

Zombie Mr. Toastee – What a hoot!

This super cute tote and whatever is inside will be your prize

I have got to show my son Mr. Toastee. A couple years ago he did some comic strips and one of his characters was Toasty who was of course a piece of toast and a good friend of Cookie the main character who was of course a cookie. We may need to get a Mr. Toastee for our plush collection and perhaps I can get my hands on a Mr. Pastree as well. Click on photos to go to that item in her shop.

Have a super duper plushie day!!!!!

Scottie Dog Needle Square

2009-10-01T19:34:00.001-07:00

Here is a little something for you dog lovers out there, or a cute little gift for a dog lover that you know. I just love creating felt things with the Scottie dog theme and everyone loves pink, right?

Click photo to go to this item in my shop

Brand New – Needle Squares

2009-09-30T12:37:00.001-07:00

Brand new today are my felt needle squares. Quite a divergence from my usual plush cuties but felt is another of my passions along with fleece. I typically use felt to create new Christmas ornament designs each year for my family but decided to branch out a bit.

If you can believe it, I have been keeping my needles organized by pinning them to a folded paper napkin for over a year now. Just a couple weeks ago I decided that I needed something a little more stylish and attractive to pin my needles to...and the needle square was born. This item will be offered in numerous sizes and designs– 4” x 4”, 3” x 3”, 3” x 4” and 3” x 5”.

Pumpkin Needle Square - $8.00

The Perfect Booster Seat

2009-09-29T08:41:00.001-07:00

Or at least I think it is. I was talking to a friend the other day and the subject of booster seats came up. I noticed that she had one of those hard plastic ones that you have to strap to a chair and yet it still slides around and is not very convenient to travel with. When my son was little I used this Cooshee Booster from One Step Ahead. You can literally put this booster on any chair or even a bench and it stays put and is very comfortable on your kids tushie. You don’t have to worry about it damaging someone's furniture either.

So, if you have kids yourself or you have kids visiting all the time, give this booster a try. I know you and the kids will love it. It even comes in some new colors, that black one is awesome and will blend right into anyone's decor.

The Allure of the Vampire

2009-09-23T14:45:00.001-07:00

I know there are those out there that are steadfastly refusing to read any of the Twilight books or see the movie just because of all the publicity and hullabaloo there has been about it. I am not one of those people, but up until a couple days ago I had not even broke open the cover on one of the books and have not seen the movie. I must say that I am quite enjoying the book. It is simply entertaining which is one of the qualities I enjoy in books and I am a bit of a speed reader so I am sure I will finish the book in no time. Not that I don’t enjoy something more difficult and complex as well. I love Jane Austen, her stories are not really complex but I find the reading more difficult because of the way they spoke back then, I am slower and more careful when reading that type of book. I also love a good spy or cop novel such as Tom Clancy, James Patterson, Stuart Woods, JA Jance and Patricia Cornwell.

What a handsome devil. I am not quite sure if he lives up to the description of Edward in the book, I will have to see the move to determine that. As soon as I finish the book I will watch the movie so don’t spoil it for me!

But I must confess that my all time favorite authors are Nora Roberts, Clive Cussler, Elizabeth Lowell (no relation) and Lyndsay Sands. Nora Roberts can be a bit corny and over the top with the romance scenes but I do enjoy all the facts and/or history that she wraps around it all. I am a huge re-reader so I save most of my books and read them once a year. It is kind of like visiting old friends.

I am not sure why I am so strangely attracted to Vampire novels, maybe that they are made out to be so handsome and romantic. If you are interested in some very romantic (this is a warning) vampire books check these out. Click on the author’s name to go to their websites.

Nora Roberts

Circle Trilogy (Vampires & other mythical folk)
Three Sisters Island Trilogy (Good witches against evil)
Stars of Mithra Trilogy
Key Trilogy
Irish Trilogy (Irish myth – ghosts and Fairies)

Lindsay Sands (definitely all Vampire)
Argeneau and Rogue Hunter series (12 books so far)

Fall is here and the cooler, fall like weather is not far behind, grab one of these books and snuggle up in your favorite chair, maybe by the fire, and travel to another world.

To see what I am reading now and my list of upcoming reads take a look in the right hand column ----------------->

Play me Those Blues

2009-09-22T11:51:00.001-07:00

Yesterday my son took a huge leap, for him, and joined The Skyview Eagle band (for 5th and 6th graders). He has finally found something that interests him enough to put some time into, his dad is very happy. Up until now he has taken art and cooking classes but never anything long term. I really hope he enjoys it. This will be a great way to get a head start in band before he goes to middle school next year.

We are going to have some early mornings, practice starts at the Jr. High at 7:50 am three days a week, ugh. I am NOT an early riser and neither is my son. We will be subject to TRUMPET practice here at home, I think I can handle it.

Maybe he will grow up to be an artist, chef and famous trumpet player??? No pressure.

Trumpet photos from lady_elsinore’s Flickr stream.
Click photos to see her on Flickr

TR Mack Studio

2009-09-20T23:59:00.001-07:00

Shimmy on over to my garden blog – The Tiny Garden and check out my feature on TR Mack Studio. Awesome art for any garden lover!

Il Concerto in Rosa E Verde – 11 X 14 Signed Art Print $23.50

VivaLaModa Online Magazine

2009-09-18T21:17:00.001-07:00

Woohoo! I made it into an issue of VivaLaModa! Or rather my Mini Monster Ghost made it. I have seen this online magazine before and admired the wonderful photography and clothing styles. I am happy to be included on the “Halloween Treats” page 54. My Ghost is #2.

Check out this great online magazine for yourself this weekend and don’t forget to keep checking my shop, I am adding new items frequently. Also, If you are starting your Christmas shopping now, check out my Personalized Photo Ornaments. They make great gifts.

HOOT, New Owls

2009-09-17T16:12:00.001-07:00

Come on over to Lowell and Son and see our owls. They are the perfect size for cuddling and carrying around. I even have one in my car that travels with me where ever I go!

1. Asher the Owl {soon to be listed}
2. DeeDee the Disco Owl {in my shop now}
3. NEW fleece pattern. Coming soon on a Tiny Garden Owl
4. DeeDee the Disco Owl close-up

Ring, Ring, Ring…hello?

2009-09-15T00:32:00.001-07:00

Yes, after purchasing a button ring from a favorite seller of mine {WHIMSYlove} I decided to try my hand at making my own. I don’t think I will be jumping into selling them but maybe just make them for myself and for gifts. A friend of mine has already been hinting…

1. “Nite Out”, little button on top is sparkly. I think this is my favorite.
2. The back, showing the ring blank that I glued the buttons to. I found ring blanks on Ebay for a good price.
3. “Pink Lady”, the little girl that I watch after school has her eye on this one.
4. “Blue Oyster”. It is hard to get a good photo of this one but the iridescent effect is awesome as well as the size of this button.

So, now I just need to add to my button collection and get crafty. I posted on my Facebook page that I am looking for button collections and already two friends have offered to let me have theirs (I would pay them of course). Next…Scrabble Tiles!

Mad Women?

2009-09-10T00:15:00.001-07:00

I am totally addicted to Mad Men! Check out what I would look like if I was on the show. The first picture is me in my office attire, giving my boss his coffee and paper in the morning. The second is me in my evening attire, out for a little dancing and some martini’s. To Mad Men yourself click HERE.

Hmmm, Don Draper sure is a handsome devil on the show. I don’t think I would want to be married to him but maybe just a little fling?

Don’t forget!!! Sundays at 10pm

Flowers for Grr

2009-09-08T14:58:00.001-07:00

I am sorry that my post for today is going to be a bit of a downer. We discovered on Sunday evening that our gerbil Grr had died. We had been treating her for two weeks for chronic Bronchitis (with meds from our vet), but in the end we just could not get her well. It seems silly to get upset about a little rodent, but we had Grr for 2 1/2 years and she was such a nice little gerbil. She is survived by her sister Brownie and our hamster Snicker. I am sure my son will always remember his special little pet, I know I will.

During the day while I am working and by myself I go in my son’s room many times to take a look at the little critters and say hi to them if they are awake. It will be strange to not see her in there anymore. But as my son said, she feels better now up in heaven.

My son and I put Grr in a pretty corner of the garden. We placed a flagstone over her grave and my son picked flowers by himself for her. Later when we find just the right smooth rock he wants to write something for her and place it on the flagstone.

Our Newest Items

2009-09-06T19:51:00.001-07:00

Yikes, after running to the fabric store to get two bags of stuffing I have finished some brand new, fresh items for our shop! Our Tiny Garden Owl design is fresh this week. Go to LowellandSon to read each of their stories.

1. Inverno the Snow Owl from the Tiny Garden
2. Penelope the Floral Monster Hamster (one of a kind)
3. Sinistro the Halloween Owl from The Tiny Garden
4. Louise the Owl from The Tiny Garden

Sneak Peek

2009-09-01T23:53:00.001-07:00

Introducing our newest item, “The Tiny Garden Owl.” This particular owl is named Louise and she will be listed in my shop Wednesday. I created this owl design in celebration of my love of gardening and nature and named it after my garden blog thetinygarden. I am doing a new posting with photos of our trip to Mount Rainier so hop on over and take a look. Talk about nature!

Hangin’ out in Yakima

2009-08-23T00:25:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we made the drive over to my parent’s house in Roslyn, WA. (1 1/2 hr drive is all). We stayed the night Friday and after we had breakfast and were washed up Saturday AM, me, my son and my mom headed to Yakima in my truck. I think that drive is about an hour or so, but the scenery is completely different than the drive to Roslyn. Between CleElum and Yakima are very arid hills and mountains. We climbed up and down in my poor semi-gutless truck quite a few times. There was not much to see, most of the land near the freeway is owned by the government and used for military training (do not go wandering around these parts!) There were a couple super views of farming areas where they grew mostly hay and apples. You can’t beat the Yakima area when it comes to apples or corn.

I had not visited my sister’s home in quite a while so it was great to see all the changes that had been made. We got to have a great visit for Chelsea’s 11th birthday, with presents, BBQ lunch and cake. We didn’t head back to Roslyn till after 7pm, yikes. I only wish my sister and I lived closer together…I would definitely love to spend more time hanging out with her.

{Chelsea and Amber posing for their mom}

{My sister and her parrot Kiki who is new to the family}

{My son enjoying the pool}

{Yesssss, it is quite cold, yet very refreshing}

Our visit with my Mom, Dad and brother was great too. We spent lots of time relaxing on the new patio my dad and brother built. {to see the patio go to my GARDEN blog} My brother made us yummy spaghetti on Saturday night. Sunday my son, my dad and I walked into town and took a quick look around the local farmer’s market. My dad bought corn and some peaches and said howdy to some other local folks. Hmmm, I saw some copper twirly things I think I can make myself, yet another project. We also made a little stop at the local hardware store. I have never seen so much stuff in such an interesting place. Sunday for dinner (before we headed for home) my dad barbequed chicken on their brand new BBQ and we of course had some delicious YAKIMA corn.

$ Up next: Our day trip to Port Townsend, WA.

Halloween Plush!

2009-08-14T15:44:00.001-07:00

Check out my shop for my latest Halloween designs and get your own spooky yet cute and cuddly friend.

{Pembroke the Mini Monster Pumpkin}

{Monster Ghost}

{Mini Monster Ghost}

{Halloween Black Cat Monster Kitty with hand painted silver eyes}

{Halloween Black Cat Monster Kitty with hand painted orange eyes}

{Monster Bat}

{Frankenstein Monster}

LinkWithin Discovery and Tutorial

2009-08-10T15:37:00.001-07:00

I would like to offer one suggestion when creating blog posts, be sure and add tags to your post. I did this a bit haphazardly, sometimes I would remember, most of the time I did not and some have tags I don’t want there anymore.

Browsing through some of my favorite blogs I noticed an application at the bottom of each of their posts showing other posts that I may like. I have been planning for a little while to add this application and today I finally did. This is a wonderful thing to encourage more navigation through my older posts by suggesting my posts with similar subject matter. The only thing is you REALLY need to use your tags for this to work well. So I have been spending quite a bit of time today organizing and adding tags, it will probably be an ongoing project but when it is done I will like my blog that much more. So if you would like to add this application to your blog start by going HERE.

Follow their instructions there on the right by typing in your email address, blog address, platform and color style. Click Get Widget and they pretty much do it all for you. Just drag and drop the widget they create under your “blog posts” widget in your layout area. If you want to start working on your tagging, click on “posting” then “edit posts” and get to work! I wrote out all my tags as I created them so I could make sure I did not duplicate anything with capitals, for example, Plush and plush. That would be considered two different tags.

Get out there and have some blogging fun!

Poor Brownie…and Friends

2009-08-06T01:24:00.001-07:00

I snapped this photo of our little gerbil Brownie last week. Our poor little critters were so hot in my son’s room upstairs, I ended up moving them down to the kitchen for a day with some ice next to their cages. We also have another gerbil named Grr and a dwarf hamster named Snicker.

Gerbils try and stay cool sometimes by laying on their backs. I think they look soooo cute doing this. One time Grr was so sound asleep with her little feet in the air I though she was dead. I tapped on the cage and she didn’t move. I had to take off the lid and almost touch her before she woke up. My heart almost stopped!

Look at her little paws tucked up under her chin

I am Moving to the Mall!

2009-07-30T01:53:00.000-07:00

I have been roasting like a hot dog over a camp fire! It has been in the 90's this week and it is supposed to get from 98 to 100 tomorrow. This weather is just crazy for the Pacific Northwest. The temp in my home office Wednesday reached 98 and there is no way anyone is going to get me to sit in there and do anything, so I am doing a quick, old style, non Windows Live Writer post from my laptop just to let everyone know I am surviving and will be back this weekend with new posts on both of my blogs.

If you have not already, check out my SALE section on Etsy, I have been adding to it everyday. Here is your chance to get one of my items at a discount price!

Coming up: Halloween plush will be listed in August. Check my shop next week for some spooky stuff. Well, more cute than spooky but definitely Halloweenish.

Some Fun With My Son

2009-07-23T19:18:00.001-07:00

Last Sunday my son and I decided to get our rear ends over to Frost for our first taste of their homemade doughnuts. {Check out Frost here}. He had a glazed old fashioned and I had a Banana Fritter, YUM! They make Apple and Pear Fritters too but have not had them available the few times we have visited, I can’t wait to try those {naughty, I had a Banana Split Fritter yesterday}.

I had forgotten that it was the weekend for the Mill Creek Festival so we hung around the Town Center and checked everything out, had to get some Kettle Corn, spent some time in the University Book store and stopped by the library. A super fun activity to watch each year is the Puget Sound Dock Dogs (photos from their website). {Check out their website}.

After our fun in Mill Creek we were hungry for lunch so we headed for Bothell to have some burgers at Kid Valley. Once we were stuffed we headed for the Bothell Landing park to relax and watch the ducks and geese.

{shadow self portrait, my son and I on the bridge}

Whew, that was a fun filled day!

Happy Birthday!

2009-07-21T13:55:00.001-07:00

To our kitty Lacey! She is 14 today. I always thought that she was half Siamese, but I discovered recently while looking at photos of different breeds of cats that she is most likely half Birman. She has the white paw tips and her coloring is strangely symmetrical on her front legs. Her “other half” must have given her the short hair and extra white markings. I am not sure who to blame for her nasty disposition…

{3-5-09}

{7-19-09}

{December 1998 – my son hugging Lacey}

{Seal Point Birman photo from Cat Fancier’s website, click HERE to go there}

Cannon Beach, Oregon {Kite Flying}

2009-07-15T18:40:00.001-07:00

Since I really don’t think we will be going down to Cannon Beach this summer I thought I would re-live our vacations by doing a series of photographic posts. {For information on Cannon Beach click HERE for the Chamber of Commerce}

{2007} guys wave surfing with kites {Manzanita, OR}

{2007} My son waiting for the kite to be thrown in the air {Cannon Beach, OR} I really want to sink my toes into that sand right NOW.

{2007} My son flying the trick kite {Cannon Beach, OR}

{2007} Waiting on the ok for lift-off {Cannon Beach, OR}

{2006} My favorite photo from that year, I love the green jacket against the blue sky. If you look close you can see my Son’s shark kite way above his head {Cannon Beach, OR}

{Next post} Water FUN!

Ferigno Motorman {Monster Hamster}

2009-07-14T11:46:00.001-07:00

Ferigno is a super soft and handsome Monster Hamster. Ferigno's favorite activity is watching Super Bike racing and dreaming that it is he standing in the winners spot up on stage. Ferigno loves looking at himself in the mirror and practicing his Italian.

Since I am wishing I was on vacation but am probably not going to be going on a vacation this year my next few posts will be of photos from our last two years of vacation in Cannon Beach Oregon. Come on back and check it out.

Plush in the Garden

2009-07-10T18:27:00.001-07:00

Pop on over to my garden blog, TheTinyGarden and check out my Plush in the Garden feature. Find these really sweet peas and more!

frolicdesign: Ginger and Estelle - check out these adorable fleece peas that come with their own zippered pod. It looks just like a real pea pod!

Introducing Rhys Raccoon

2009-07-07T19:19:00.001-07:00

Rhys the Monster Raccoon is our newest addition to the LowellandSon Monster family.

Rhys dreams of visiting Wales someday and perhaps finding some of his raccoon relatives there in the Welsh forests and glens. He enjoys a bracing cup of hair-raising tea and will positively snarf down every last biscuit if you leave out the tin.

Sneak Peek

2009-07-06T23:27:00.001-07:00

Here is a quick sneak peek of our newest, never before seen item.

We will be listing this item Tuesday.

100th Sale Promotion!

2009-07-05T14:37:00.001-07:00

Yes I am on the brink of my 100th sale on Etsy! To celebrate and to give myself a little shove from 99 to 100 I am offering a free Monster Kitten to my 100th customer. You may choose one of two, either the Charcoal Gray Monster Kitten or the Cafe Mocha Monster Kitten ($14.00 value). Please note your choice in the “notes to seller” or just send me a convo.

So scoot on over to my shop, LowellandSon, and take a look around, even if you don’t see the exact kitty, bear, or hamster you want I can do custom colors so just give me a shout and we can go over what I have available.

Happy 4th of July

2009-07-03T23:51:00.001-07:00

This time last year we were nearing the end of our week long vacation in Arch Cape/Cannon Beach Oregon. Unfortunately this year we will probably not make it there at all. This 4th we will be watching fireworks from the bluff in Everett whilst fighting off the mosquitoes that have suddenly invaded the area. No soft sand beneath our feet or roar of the ocean in our ears (wiping tear from the corner of my eye).

In celebration of the Grand Ole 4th I am posting some of my favorite fireworks photos from our vacation in 2008. Arch Cape puts on an awesome show down at the beach. Renters and residents light off enough fireworks to rival some of the professional shows in Seattle. Enjoy!

KABOOM!

Blogger Button Just Discovered

2009-07-02T23:24:00.001-07:00

Is it just me? How come I did not notice this button sooner? When you are logged into your blog take a look at the top of your screen. You will see the following buttons…

SEARCH BLOG
FLAG BLOG
FOLLOW BLOG
NEXT BLOG

Notice the “FOLLOW BLOG” button there. Now usually there is a follower widget to make it simple to follow someone new but sometimes it is not functioning or they forgot to put it on there or don’t know how yet. Your other option was to copy their blog URL and paste it into your follow window on your dashboard which involved you going back to your dashboard and wasting a little bit of time. The other day I wanted to follow a blog and they did not have the widget, for some reason I looked up and there it was. A button you could just click and you are suddenly following! You learn something new everyday.

Alchemic Muse Soaps

2009-06-29T23:06:00.001-07:00

Check out my feature on Alchemic Muse soaps on my garden blog, The Tiny Garden. Below is one of the soaps I purchased recently.

Biscayne Bay Spa – My bathroom smells so wonderful with this soap sitting in my soap dish. The soap literally looks like an ocean wave with the swirls and salt on the top.

Say Hello to Gretta Cotton Candy

2009-06-25T23:22:00.001-07:00

Kevin would like to welcome our newest monster, Gretta Cotton Candy. I wish you could reach through the monitor and feel how soft this pink fleece is. There would be no way that you wouldn’t want this gal for your own. Take a look at her story and photos HERE on Etsy.

We have another important announcement. Kevin now has a new little brother, Greg Van Schnoonhoven. Kevin is very excited that he has a little brother to share in his monster antics and keep him company during his all day naps. So far he has not been tempted to put him up for adoption. If you are interested in getting your own monster similar to Kevin please take a look at Royster T. Floogerhoober in my shop.

Thanks for looking and have a great weekend (almost)!

Happy Father’s Day

2009-06-23T15:25:00.001-07:00

I am a few days late, I totally forgot to do this post on Saturday but I still want to post the photos I gathered of our special Dad’s.

My dad and the pack Mini on a hike 2001

My dad and son enjoying a parade in Roslyn 2001

My husband and son enjoying some cereal 1999

My husband and son – coloring and smooches 2000

Papa Paulie (my husband’s dad) and my son at the Heritage Flight Museum fly day in Everett/Boeing Field 2009