Late start to the new year..

The holiday season, followed by a rough beginning of this year has hit me hard.  Weather in Philadelphia has been atrocious for more than a month and I'm still working on some gifts I'd promised last year.  I was in a bit of a creative slump in the month of January, but I'm getting excited about creating things again!

I've been working on a few pretty amazing things for my friends.  I made custom capes for two of my friends - one covered in stars, with handmade glow-in-the-dark star buttons (because I just couldn't find any big star buttons!), and the other in pink and purple prints.  The joy and warmth that these have brought has been wonderful to share.

I got a serger for the holidays.  I'm excited.  I've done a bit of finishing on things already, but a lot of the things I work with don't actually fray (namely fleece).  I've been doing a lot of fleece work recently so I haven't gotten to test it out as much as I would like.  But, I hope to soon as I plan to do more...

Custom bag work!  I love creating the bags that people want to carry with them everywhere.  The bag that's the solution to the "where did I put that..." question.  I've made a few of them, and they're even more exciting than a wearable blanket that will keep you cozy no matter what.  They're a life solution!

So, that's what's around the bend for me.  Working on custom bags, mostly out of recycled corduroy.

Getting back into the creative swing of things is great, and empowering.  I hope to hear from some of you soon about what you'd love to see!

Yes-vember

This post was supposed to be finished at the start of the month, but here we are just a little late. That's how it goes sometimes.

As the summer is turning sharply into fall, my creative home juices are finally coalescing into creating new and wonderful things.   I'm so at home making things cozy and warm, it just doesn't make a lot of sense to put all the effort in to the summer - it's just too hot and sunny for things made of fleece for you to cuddle under.

I have spent the past week or so helping work on decorations for a party with my friends the Space Pirates, to help bring their bus, the Dubstar, back to life.  It needs a whole new engine, so we're throwing a fundraiser to get the new engine installed so it can bring its awesomeness (sweet lounge bus, sound system, great people) back around to local events.  Above is some neon yellow fishnet I've made.  Not sure if it will be a part of this party's environment, but I am helping to create the unique cuddle puddle experience.  It's due to be awesome, and I'm so excited to be on board with this amazing crew of Philadelphia artists.

     

I've been working on making more unique pouches as well.  These are just a couple of the newer ones that are up on my Etsy site.  (Click on them to go to the listings.)  I really enjoy being able to keep my hands busy and creating, and I can only hope that I'm bringing a little slice of happiness and fun to people's lives.  Seeing people's eyes light up when they purchase one of my creations is one of the best feelings of all.

 A few months ago, I went to a local event and sold out of all of my hoods.  I've been making more, and I'll be putting them up on my Etsy shop shortly.  They're cute and fun; I really like them.  The teeth make it look like the monster is just biting your head off - or that you've conquered the vicious beast and you're using its pelt as a trophy!

      

Last weekend, I went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art for the first time.  Museums are always really wonderful experiences.  There was a lot of medieval art, which isn't my favorite, but these are two photos I took while there.  The first is a modern art piece in neon, which is one of my favorite mediums to see.  It's just always so jarring and interesting.  The second is a photo by Paul Strand, taken in Ghana.  This was really bizarre to see, because in the words written in the photo, my last name is actually spelled out.  It's in a foreign language (probably Akan?) and it's actually part of two different words, but it's still really strange to look into a photo of a place you've been and loved and see your own name staring back at you.

Finally, I got this amazing Etsy card reader a few weeks ago.  I'm really excited to have it for when I go out to local events.  I feel like it will really help me out, as well as help out anyone who purchases from me.  Real email receipts, being able to take all kinds of payments, being unafraid to bring everything listed on my site - no possibility of duplicate sales!  It's great, I'm excited.  And it's even all packaged in the best color of all - orange!

So here's to another month of creating, inspiring and being inspired.  Being here in a city full of art and artists is constantly inspiring, and I strive to surround myself with artists doing things that are beautiful, creative and stunning.  I feel like I've found the people who help inspire me, and I want to help bring their visions to life when I can.

The joy of gifting

Just a couple of weekends ago, I had the pleasure of attending the wedding of two friends.  It was a beautiful celebration of their intended community - a camping weekend in the woods with all the people they wanted to be surrounded by.  It was so amazing and full of love.

I knew I wanted to create something special for them, to commemorate this important moment in their lives.  So I worked diligently to create a pair of capes for them, which were both similar and unique - like each person in a marriage should be.

The groom later told me that one of the things he'd really wanted was a cape.  The fact that I was able to surprise him with just what he wanted was the most amazing gift right back to me.

They're happy smudgy faces, I swear!

I worked hard and with intention on these - choosing fabrics based on the couple's wedding color palette, choosing interesting and washable buttons, and sewing each with a combination of thread colors to show their union, their independence, and my hand in their creation.

From my Instagram - @enrichedmacaronis

"Just finished up some special wedding gifts I'm giving out this weekend."

My color palette was teal, purple and magenta, though I did end up using green for the groom, as they didn't have a teal tie-dye fleece and I felt more connected to green as a color for him than blue.  The outer fabric lept out to me as it had all these colors, and was just psychedelic enough without being overpowering.  The inner linings are both tie-dye-like prints in two different styles and colors.  The pockets are two completely different fabrics.  The buttons have matching bottom buttons but the top are in the same family but also totally different.  Each is edged with (and the pockets edged in as well) a different color of glow-in-the-dark thread.

They looked so fun, regal and majestic while they cavorted around in them.  It was wonderful to see.  The bride didn't take hers off at all (I gave them away when I heard her say she was cold - nothing better than a gift full of love and meant for snuggling to warm you right up!) the whole rest of the weekend, and the groom wore his more often than not as well.

Hopefully these will last them a long time, keeping them cozy and warm for many days to come.

What's boiling in the noodle pot...

Hey out there!

The pot's boiling, so we're throwing some fresh noodles in to get cooked to perfection.  Keep up with the Etsy shop and watch out for new products for the summer season!

In addition, you might want to take a behind-the-scenes peek at our Instagram, where you can see what we're working on.  There's some interesting photos as well as inspiration, like the one below:

Working on more pouches, and color pooling techniques...

So please be sure to follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for more frequent updates and feel free to contact me via comment or email if there's any special idea noodling around in your head that needs to be extruded into the most awesome thing you can dream of!

<3

Welcome!

Welcome to the blog of Enriched Macaroni Products! We hand-craft accessories that you will love!

This blog is a behind-the-scenes look into how things are made and what's on our roster for the future.

So check back soon.  I'm currently working on constructing an accessory that's been well-loved and much desired that you can have for your very own!