The weather outside is frightful......

....but Mr. Toastee looks so delightful! Just peeking out of my pile of custom orders to share one of my newest creations. These little guys were made for someone uber special. I love making gifts for folks who I know will totally appreciate them!! ^_^

Plush Team Plush Swap

Whew! I have been up to my eyeballs in custom orders here! I have been crocheting so much that my fingers just might fall off! The Plush Team did a secret plush swap for Nov/Dec and I got my super awesome plushies in the mail the other day! Check them out....are they adorable or what? Thank you to the very talented PterodactylPants for these little guys! You can read the story of their arrival, plus the storied from my fellow plush teamers about their swaps on the Plush team Blog.

Holiday Ornament Recipe - Try It!

Today I wanted to share an awesome recipe of mine to make the coolest ornaments. It is uber easy, and they smell absolutely wonderful when put on your tree and make you house smell nice when you have them all set out to dry. I would recommend picking up the ingredients from your local dollar store or discount grocery store - otherwise, you are going to spend an arm and a leg on the spices alone.

**These ornaments are NOT edible!!**

Cinnamon Ornaments

1 cup applesauce

1/2 cup cinnamon4

T. ground cloves2

T. allspice2

T. nutmeg

Add all ingredients in a bowl. Work mixture with hands until dough is smooth and ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Divide into smaller portions and roll with rolling pin. Cut dough with cookie cutters. Using a straw, poke a hole near the top for inserting a ribbon as a hanger. Lay the ornaments on a tray covered with wax paper. Turn ornaments every other day until completely dry. It takes about 4-5 days. Use ribbon to make a hanger. Have fun! Also, I usually mix several batches at one time. One doesn't make too many ornaments unless you have very small cookie cutters. I also found that they will smell great year after year if you store them in an airtight container or bag.

Future Fan of Mr. Toastee

Okay, I totally had to double post today. I wanted to introduce you to my future niece or nephew. I cannot wait to shower him/her with tons and tons of plush goodness!! This kid is going to have the coolest plush collection ever...well, next to me. Are you totally jealous or what? Right now they are smaller than Mr Toastee - they may be just about as big as mini Mr. Toastee ^_^

Thank you for your votes!

Mr. Toastee and I wanted to take this time to thank all of our fans for voting for us in the MODNARoS contest!!! We were both so happy to win and couldn't have done it with out all you folks! I can't wait to get more buttons...I think I have some more ideas for clothes for Mr. Toastee using them ^_^ Stay tuned!

VOTE for Mr. Toastee!

Make sure you stop here and vote for Mr. Toastee in the MODNARoS contest with no name ^_^ He's wearing his favorite winter coat and hat ^_^

Glowing with excitement for BBBS

Wanna get some holiday shopping done and support a great cause at the same time? Head on over the the Plush team etsy shop NOW!!! Me and my fellow Plushteamers have donated plush to the shop, and all proceeds are going to Big Brothers, Big Sisters!

I have contributed a special edition glow in the dark Happy Happy Ice Cream Cone plushie! Be the envy of your peers while supporting a great cause!

Be sure to check the team blog and the shop daily...there will be a new plush added to the store every day!

Portable Holidays

Woohoo! I came up with a few new holiday themed plush key chains. Check them out:

Mr. Turkee the turkey leg

Mr. Snowee the snowball

They are currently available in my etsy shop.

I also finished my piece for MODNARoS contest using the buttons I received, and I have to say, it is pretty darn fabulous...more on that later ^_^

Button up, it's cold outside!

I love a challenge - that's just how I roll - so when I heard about the contest Tennekka was having, I could not pass it up! She makes these beautiful buttons, MODNARoS by Tennekka. So, the contest is, she sends you a button or 2, and you need to incorporate them into one of your creations. Then, folks will vote on the entries and the winner receives 20 buttons from her shop! You can read more about it on her blog. How cool is that?? So yesterday, I got the buttons in the mail(as you can see pictured above). I have so many ideas floating around in my head right now.....Should I incorporate them into a holiday plush, a delicious food plushie, or something completely bizarre? I'm open to suggestions ^_^

White, Wheat or Rye?

You know how when you go to a restaurant and order toast or a sandwich, you are given a choice of bread? Well, now you get that same choice when you go to Yummy Pancake to purchase your very own Mr. Toastee! That's right - The Mr. Toastee plushie and plush key chain now comes in Original(white), Whole Wheat, and Rye!

And you thought Mr. Toastee couldn't get any better ^_^

Just when you thought it was safe to eay Thanksgiving dinner....

....Pumpkin pie body, whipped cream head, cranberry sauce arms, and turkey drumstick legs - Introducing the Thanksgiving Dinner Monster!!! The perfect table centerpiece! He is sure to be a conversation starter ^_^

Seriously, I don't know how I come up with these guys....just wait till you see what else I have in store for you!!

I See Blind Boxes

Yes, I have an addiction to blind box toys. They are just so much fun! Here are some pics of the newest additions to my collection:

I love the Dunny....he's fuzzy!

3 Yummy Breakfast and 1 Spider Baby Boom ^_^_

Happy (Belated) Halloween

ps - never watch the movie "Satan's Little Helper"....trust me on that one!

Breakfast is the most Important Meal of the Day

Today was a great day! Over lunch, I went to this awesome Art Gallery in Lancaster called Metropolis and got myself a couple blind box toys - a Dunny and also a little Snorkin. I'll take pics of the ones I got later, as I am feeling quite lazy at the moment. I am starting to become very addicted to blind box toys. Then, we grabbed lunch at a little Italian Bakery...uber delish! To top it all off, I finished up another custom order I was working on! Behold - Creepy Breakfast Monster II:

I also made a Breakfast Monster Toddler Hat - my first attempt at head wear for kiddos. I love how it turned out!!

mmmm...Toastee!

Just finished up this little guy for a custom order - A Mr. Toastee Scarf modeled by my giant Pikachu. It has happy buttered toastees, indifferent plain toastees, and then angry burnt toastees. I LOVE how it turned out! I'm thinking about making some angry burnt plush Mr. Toastee Plushies in the near future ^_^ I love the original happy, but the burnt Mr. Toastee just seems to be packing so much attitude ^_^

Plush Team Sept/Oct Challenge Voting

The entries for the Sept/Oct Plush team project are up on the Plush team blog and voting is open! Stop by and check out all of the wonderful plush team creations and vote for your favorite!

btw - My Mr. Toastee dressed as a Black Cat is in the Costume Challenge category ^_^

A Toast to this week ^_^

Wow! Was this an amazing week for me! I had good stuff happening at work, I got a couple big projects in my queue completed, Plush You opened this week, and to top it all off, I found out that I'm going to be an Aunt! I am going to totally spoil that kid rotten - he/she is going to have more plushies that you can shake a stick at!! I also hit the big 30 this week....not too happy about that. I don' feel like I'm thirty, and according to most folks, I don't look it (or act it) either. And just because I'm 30, that doesn't mean that I'm going to become dull....I still have an uber wild imagination and massive creative drive that cannot be tamed. Just look at the Mr. Toastee Throw Pillow that I whipped up:

And speaking of Plush You, If you are in the Seattle area, stop by Fancy and check out the pieces I sent for Plush You!

Yummy Pancake Wins Ribbons at the 2008 Ephrata Fair!

Yep! The Ephrata Fair was this past week - it's the largest street fair in PA, and always a ton of fun! Once again this year, I submitted some of my work for judging and won ribbons for all 3 of my submissions! It's the second year in a row that I got ribbons for everything I entered!

I got first place in the Christmas Decoration - Felt and Latch hook category for my hand sewn advent calender:

I also scored first place in the Toys category for Ms. Stitch and Ted the Thread:

and I got second place for my Mr. Toastee Messenger bag in the Useful Article, Crochet category:

I have to say, once again, I am very pleased....I would have liked to have gotten first place for my messenger bag, but I'll take second ^_^

Even Toast Dresses Up For Halloween!

Here is my entry for the Esty Plush Team Sept/Oct project - Costumed Plush Catergory. When I asked Mr Toastee what he wanted to be for halloween, he said, "a black cat". So, I whipped up a little black kitteh costume for him - complete with little pink paws! You can check out the other Plush team project entries on the Plush team blog.

I love living in a world where Toast dresses up for Halloween ^_^

Glow in the Dark = Awesome

Everyone likes stuff that Glows in the dark! When I heard that Bernat came out with glow in the dark yarn, i HAD to get me some! Turns out it's uber expensive - $4 for only 72 yards, but it's totally worth it! The pics suck cause my camera kinda sucks, but check out the glow in the dark mini Mr. Spookee and mini Candy Corn that I whipped up ^_^ They are available in my etsy shop!

Free Time Anyone?

I've been a bit lax on the old blog, as I an currently doing a daily countdown to Renegade Chicago on the Plush team blog, highlighing all of the team members who will be participating in the event. The Plush team will be at booth 70 if you are going to be in the area!!

That being said, I have also been quite busy on some special projects, custom orders and entries for the 90th annual Ephrata Fair, as well as trying to come up with some new designs...there just isn't enough hours in a day! I am very happy though, as my plushies for Renegade made it, and I also completed my pieces for Plush You and those arrived safely today in Seattle! I'm going to keep a little suspense as far as what I sent in for Plush You(although you can see one on them on my photostream in flickr)....partly because I totally forgot to take a pic of one of the pieces...grrrrr

I did come up with a couple new mini keychains for halloween though - a mini candy corn as well as Mr. Spookee - available now in my etsy shop:

Off to Chicago we go!

Woohoo! I finally got all my little guys done for Renegade Chicago!! It was so hard to decide what to make so I decided to go with some of my favorites...I may make a couple last minute substitutions, as I realize my peas are conspicuously absent from the gang. If you are going to be in the Chicago area Sept 13 and 14th, make sure you stop by Renegade Chicago and find the fabulous Plush Team booth...it is going to be the most huggable booth there!!! I can't wait to see pics of everyone's plushies all together there! I really wish I could go!

Itteh Bitteh Kittehs

I just completed a custom order for skybluebunny of 2 itteh bitteh kittehs made to look just like her little guy. She made me a rocking pair of sno cone earrings, an old school gameboy charm, and a rainbow lollipop charm our of polymer clay in return. I recommend you check out her etsy shop - her work is AMAZING!!!

Cupcakes are cool!

I have been hard at work, crocheting like a madwoman to get ready for Renegade Chicago and Plush You 2008, plus keeping up with orders and working on a couple of cool custom projects, but I found time to stop over to Jen's Pottery Den and paint some uber fun cupcakes. I did one in a poker theme because I LOVE playing Texas Hold'em, and one in Yummy Pancake colors. These guys won't go stale if you leave them sitting out ^_^

Completely off topic - Parsley

Look what I found living amongst my parsley! I was about to pick them out until I realized what they were - monarch butterfly caterpillars - 8 to be exact. Apparently they really like parsley. I left them in there in hopes that they'll make their little cocoons and I can watch them turn into butterflies. Isn't nature cool? I can be such a nerd sometimes ^_^

mmmm....Fair Food....mmmmm

The end of summer means that fair season is upon is in and around Lancaster County! I am always looking forward to the fair in my town, The Ephrata Fair, which, by the way, is the largest street fair in PA! Over at the Etsy Plush Team, or current team project is to create a plush with a fair theme. We have 3 catagories to enter in - livestock, midway food, and the sideshow.

I have a soft spot for fair food, and when the Ephrata fair is going on, I think I eat more calories in that week than I do for the entire rest of the year! So for the Plush Team Fair project, I decided to create some plush renditions of my favorite foods to consume at the fair! Here are my first 2 entries, a Sno Cone and some delicious, fluffy, cotton candy! Both are done in an amigurumi style, and will be available shortly in my etsy shop ^_^

Be sure to check out the Plush Team Blog to see some of the other awesome plush creations for this contest!!

Look out Chicago....Here comes Yummy Pancake!

How exciting is this - the Etsy Plush Team applied as a group for a spot at the Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago and was accepted!!! What's that mean? It means that, if you are in the Chicago area Sept 13th and 14th, you can stop by and purchase some awesome plushies from Yummy Pancake as well as the other members of the Etsy Plush Team at the show!

You may be asking yourself, "what is the Renegade Craft Show?" Well, it is a Juried Indy Craft Fair extraordinaire! Over 500 applied, only 200 were accepted. The Renegade Craft Fair will highlight some of the most cutting edge crafters from not only the United States, but all over the world. It is a HUGE honor to be selected to participate.

Now you may be saying to yourself "Okay, now I understand what this Renegade Chicage Craft Show is all about, but what is this Etsy Plush Team you're yapping about?" The Etsy Plush team is only one of the most awesome groups of plush artists from all around the world! Check out the Plush Team Blog to see what kinds of fun we've been up to ^_^

Now I need to get my plush on ^_^

Excuse me, do you have the time?

So, the batteries in my old watch died again. It's a nice relic watch with one of those moving images on the face, but the batteries go so quickly, and it costs $20 each time to replace them. I couldn't decide whether I wanted to replace the batteries, or just get a new watch. My decision was made once i stumbled upon this watch on the Tokidoki website. It combines 2 of my favorite things - Tokidoki, and of course, Hello Kitty, and to top it all off...it's pink! I am so thrilled with it, I had to share ^_^

I recommend stopping by the Tokidoki site and check out some of the other Tokidoki for Hello Kitty Items...I could have spent a fortune!!!!

Summer = Ice Cream

Nothing says summer like ice cream, so I have been busy whipping up some brand new Happy Happy Ice Cream cones, such as a Triple Scoop Neapolatin, Double Scoop Pink Lemonade, and a Double Scoop Cotton Candy, as well as some new "flavors" of the original Happy Happy Ice Cream Cone ^_^

Plush Team Contest Entry - Favorite Childhood Toy Plushie - Easy Bake Oven

The Plush Team currently has a project going on where we need to create a plush inspired by our favorite Childhood toy. This is my creation for the project - a plush design inspired by my Easy-Bake oven. It was really hard for me to choose one favorite toy....there were just so many great toys in the 80's! But then I remembered how much fun it was to eat overcooked brownies and undercooked cakes.....so I just had to make an easy-bake oven! The entire thing is crochet except for some of the detail on the front where I hand-sewed pieces of felt together and hand embroidered the numbers. I even made little plush cakes with removable pans, and constructed the plush so that they can travel right through....just like the real thing!



Bonus Fact - Why did I embroider the time on the plush as 2:56? Well, when I was little, anything over the number 10 was 256, so I figured I'd incorporate that in.

I had a lot of fun taking a trip down memory lane while making this plushie. Here's a picture of me playing with my Easy-Bake Oven As a wee kiddo:



Check out one of the other awesome entries on the Plush Team Blog!