It's the Same Old Song and Dance

I fail at keeping up on these blogs. The few of you that do still follow know how awful I am about this.  I do still post on the Facebook page and Instagram.

We've had a lot of hits to my family and close friends recently.  It's not been fun.  Add in my oldest's mental health issues, and I've been a mess. (I AM getting help for my own mental health as well, no worries!)

My work space is still a mess with yarn and beads, books and random paper crafts.  I also have yarn and sewing projects all over the living room as well.  The dishes are piled up again in the sink and the laundry is in baskets or still in the dryer waiting to be sorted, folded, and put away.

At least there aren't an abundance of soda cans or bottles littering my desk. (Unlike my husband's, and he has the larger trash can by his!)

I have been thinking about combining my writing blog and crafting blog.  Of course, I've also been thinking about splitting the crafting social media accounts as well.  I have the two Etsy shops, and therefore two different emails, shouldn't I have separate Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts as well?  What's your opinion?  Merge all of the accounts again or separate them all further?  Or leave them as is?  I'm also posting the occasional PawPaw's Bear, as my dad is able to whip them out. (He works extremely long hours and is a Deacon at their church, has eight grandkids, and all of my mom's shenanigans!)  He's asked me to do the posting for them though, since he is even more internet/business illiterate than I am.  Should I make him his own page too?

I also still need to get with a few of my photographer friends to get new and professional product photos for my pieces as well as the bears.  This costs money, though. (I can't ask them "for a favor" unless they contact me about it first.  We all rely on our products for our incomes and supporting our families.)

Etsy Changes

So, it has been brought to my attention that I offer a very....wide....variety of merchandise and I should split the jewelry and fiber pieces into two different shops.

I actually kind of like this idea!  I don't think I'll be able to really open the second shop until after I get back to the states, but I am going to work on setting it up!  Jewelry will still be at Kypress Designs, however the crocheted pieces (scarves, hats, adult humor pieces) will be moved to another page.

BUT I NEED YOUR HELP!!!

I have a poll pinned to the top of Kypress Designs to help pick the new page name, but you can answer here as well.  Should I go with "Kypress Fiber Arts" or "Crochet by Kypress" or do you have another suggestion altogether?  Let me know.


Update: Karissa drew me a new logo/avatar after it was decided that the crochet and few sewing pieces would be renamed "Kypress Fiber Arts".  I also am working on posting PawPaw's Bears as well!  Keep an eye out for those.  (Or should those go to even another page?)

Happy 2018!!!

It's a new year! Another year has passed and I still failed to follow through with my statement about blogging. I'm sorry. I'm a horrible business person.
I love to craft and I do post a lot on Facebook, but it's really mostly just resharing other items or posts from other pages.
Or commenting on how crazy my kids and life is.

But this year HAS to be different.  Something's got to give.

Also, I'm going to Japan at the end of the month.  All by myself. I'm even traveling from Indianapolis to Chicago O'hare all by myself.

I've never been out of the midwest, let alone the country or flown on a plane as long as I can remember.  This is a big leap!

But I do this for friends that are living over there. They just had baby number 3, an adorable little brother for their 4 and 2 year old girls.  They are on mom's work visa, though, and she's gotta get back to teaching toddlers English!  So I'm going to help with that transition.

Did I mention I'm going for a month? Yeah, one month away from my own children, out of the country.  I'm a bit nervous about that.  I think I might even be more nervous about being away from them for a month than the whole traveling to a foreign country by myself.

I've been trying to learn Japanese, but I'm not picking it up as fast or coherently as I need to be. And I have a pretty decent layover in China both ways too.

But I'll be okay.

I have to be.

Because this year will be different.

Messy Bun Beanies

Well, I finally bit the bullet and made a listing for the messy bun beanies, hats, whatever you want to call them.  I'd had enough requests that I made one.
You can find them on both the Storenvy and the Etsy sites for $15, plus shipping!

Why did I think it was a good idea to say we could go to a birthday party from 7-9 on a school night? A POOL PARTY at that. My daughter still hasn't told me a thing about her friend and the party is tonight. So I don't have a gift made (Little Miss REALLY likes to give my handmade items to her friends) or bought. 

And it's a pool party. Remember all those LOVELY illnesses I fight? They make it a bit difficult to be in swimsuits let alone in the water when they are flaring up (looking at you, IBD, IBS, and hidradenitis suppurativa).

We've also got some storms heading our way; I can tell thanks to the migraine I've been fighting since yesterday. So, we may or may not have that party tonight; it depends on the storms. Whining, disappointed kids won't help my migraine if the party gets postponed or canceled but neither will the screams and squeals of excitement. 

I'm STILL trying to figure out this video tutorial thing for Patreon. But I'll get it worked out eventually. Maybe I'll just change it from tutorials to vlogging and say screw editing. I'll make it a mom/fighter blog instead of crochet and jewelry tutorials. What are your thoughts?

(Okay, I'm joking. Mostly. I'll do the craft tutorials, not the whining vlog.)

I'm working on another adult humor scarf--this time heading to Illinois! Woot woot. Of course, I'm trying to decide if it's cheaper to ship it or just drive over there at this point...

Auction for Grandma/Update on my Niece

Those of you that have been following the facebook page know that my family has a lot of medical issues.  (That's an understatement.) You would also know that my paternal grandma has been diagnosed with brain cancer.  She/her children opted to go for chemo knowing that it will only extend her life maybe a year, if she doesn't succumb to side effects first, from what I've been told.  She's really not doing good.  She had been moved to a nursing home/assisted living facility that will help get her the care at all hours that she needs and help with her medications and making sure she eats, but it is expensive.

I've been trying to set up an auction to help raise money to cover at least some of the costs (her medicare is refusing to cover pretty much anything at this point and the facility costs are completely out of pocket for my aunts and uncles).  I haven't been able to set it up yet, because life, but it looks like the items will all be from my shop or items that were gifted to me from another crafter leaving her business.  (I didn't reach out to anyone individually because I didn't want to feel like I was guilt tripping anyone into donating their work.)

However, I am still working on setting it up.

I also currently have a coupon code up on Etsy until the end of June. If you use IG2017 you will receive 50% off of your order.  (You'll also be emailed an additional 20% off coupon code because it's still set up that way.)  You can find the link somewhere next to this post or by clicking here.

I will update with when the auction is set up on facebook.  I'm still trying to figure out how to hold one on Instagram.  I know I don't get enough traffic here (by my own doing as I don't post often).  If I were to hold it here on the blog (to avoid the long legal disclaimer "this is in no way affiliated with Facebook" blah blah blah), how would I do it?  Have each piece given their own post?  What are your thoughts?  Any input is appreciated!

Thank you all again for all of your support still.  I know I've put you all through a lot with everything I've been going through.

*****************

My oldest niece is also still having some major issues with her epilepsy and they believe she may have Dravet's Syndrome, which "is a rare genetic epileptic encephalopathy (dysfunction of the brain). It begins in the first year of life in an otherwise healthy infant. Prior to 1989, this syndrome was known as epilepsy with polymorphic seizures, polymorphic epilepsy in infancy (PMEI) or severe myoclonic epilepsy in infancy (SMEI)."  She will be going to a better educated and specialized children's hospital out of state next month to get the help she needs.  Currently her specialist at Riley, while not specialized with Dravet's (no one in Indiana is, it seems), agrees that she should try "Charlotte's Web"* in 6-8 weeks after her and her parents' blood work comes back for some more in depth testing.  
She had multiple absence seizures in the office for the appointment that the doctor witnessed today and was concerned about.  My sister says it felt like someone was finally listening for the first time today.  She's getting a referral to a psychiatrist and behavioral specialists finally for help with school too (which my kids get for help with other mental issues).









*With it having less than .3% THC, I might be able to use it.  I am constantly "suggested" by well meaning friends to try cannabis, but I have always had a severe allergic reaction--but how do you go to the doctor for an epipen for cannabis, which is/was illegal?  Recently, however, I've discovered that it may actually be the THC that I'm allergic to, along with the paper.  Burning paper on cigarettes as well causes allergic asthma attacks.

Happy St Patrick's Day!

(I've got to give you some background story before the holiday post.)

Today has not gone according to plan at all.  This whole week has been one disaster after another, actually.  I recently started substitute teaching through a temp agency; however, most of the schools near me (the school district my children go to) is through a different branch than who I'm employed through. We're still trying to get it worked out for me to be able to accept assignments from the other branch as well.  It's a mess.  That goes into the first issue from this week (well, second; first was a HUGE issue at school with my daughter, but that's another story)--my assignment on Tuesday was on the other side of the county north of me. Not too big of a deal, except that my van died on the way home.  The Man came to rescue me, put a couple quarts of oil in, and follow me to the car shop near home--I leaked all the way home.  The van that we paid $1,800 or so for was going to cost $1,500 to repair--and the vehicle isn't even worth THAT much.  So then I had to drop the assignments for the rest of the week due to not having transportation--again, they were all way out of the way for me to be able to get to and we have no public transport down here.  Or safe bike paths, for that matter.  Heck, we hardly have sidewalks anywhere.
There was some huge drama at my exhusband's house yesterday, so the kids came home early.  Again, not a big deal, and most of the time I'm extremely happy to take them early.  However, we were going to be heading south to my mother in law's house to pick up a vehicle from her and I wasn't planning on getting the kids until afterwards due to allergen issues.  I also had an order on Etsy on Monday that I was trying to get done before the kids came home--which didn't happen. (It's kind of hard to explain why mommy is crocheting a giant penis.)  But, we've got to do what's best for the kids. (I'll have it finished and shipped by Monday; just not as fast as I'd planned.)
AND I FORGOT ABOUT ST PATRICK'S DAY!!!! I still haven't crocheted my green top hats like I'd planned. I was going to have a huge influx of holiday listings and that didn't happen.  Due to the vehicle situation, I am also missing my favorite Irish drinking band tonight.  Hogeye Navvy plays St Patrick's Day as well as every Saturday up at The Aristocrat in Irvington, Indiana.  So, I'm a bit upset about that too.  My favorite songs of theirs are "Being a Pirate" and "Old Dun Cow"; I listed them below in that order.  You HAVE to see them live--order a pretzel and beer cheese and apples with a Guiness or grog and enjoy.

Being a Pirate

Old Dun Cow

(Late) WELCOME TO 2017!

As some of you have figured out, my health and family situation is very hectic.  I know last year I promised weekly posts, and that didn't happen.  It seems like one thing after another just throws my plans to the ground.

I've added some new listings and did away with Storenvy. I am now solely on Etsy, although we're having some issues there. I tried to search a particular listing of mine and it wasn't anywhere on the ONE PAGE of items.   I think your best bet for my pieces is to just go to the store.

Speaking of etsy, there's a new coupon code you'll get emailed to you after your checkout. So keep an eye on that.

I thank all of you for sticking around all of these years with all of my family and health drama.  Thank you for being there and supporting me.  I love you all!

What else..?

Oh! I also have started picking up more custom orders.
HOWEVER, your best bet on them is to actually have me make a listing.  If you message me through my personal profile, especially if you're family, I will probably forget and push you back on the list behind people that have prepaid.  I'm sorry if this happens!  Most of the time I have to buy your materials and I can't do that without payment first if it's a custom piece.  Thank you for understanding.


My family has had some major scares this year already (on top of everything last year).  Things are currently looking up, although we are very skeptical on a few cases.  My health has been getting better in some aspects and then in others we are finally getting answers, moving forward with treatments.  Through all of that, I am going to be substitute teaching here on the southside of Indiana.  It's kind of exciting, getting back into the work force--not that THIS isn't work in itself: two custom scarves, baby blanket upon baby blanket, a king sized blanket...

I have also noticed that my crafting goes in spurts. I will crochet for months on end and ignore my jewelry and then work with the wire for a while and ignore my hooks.  But I will always complete an order for the opposite material while I'm "on a roll".

I think that's good enough for right now.  Wish me luck! I've got a lot of friends popping out babies again. I don't think baby season is ever really over...

What's New for 2016!

Hi everyone! (Or, well, all three of you.)  Thanks for sticking around even though I forget to post.  I can't remember the password, so I can't post from my phone and I'm rarely on the computer.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful year so far.  I'm glad that spring is almost here for sure.  However, we have some snow coming this week apparently.  I'm not looking forward to that. I really want to wear my flip flops--which I will anyways.

So, here's some updates!  I'm on Etsy now! (follow my shop here) I'm still working on updating photos of some pieces, so bear with me please! You can still shop at storenvy but I know a lot of people are switching to Etsy and I may as well jump on that band wagon as well.

I am still on facebook and I post there a lot. I hope you are still following my page and interacting there!  (Thanks for sticking around with all of my hospitalizations, too.  Those drug induced posts can be annoying, I know.)  I'm working on getting pieces worked up to keep in stock and ready to ship. I post when I finish them and I'm posting them on instagram as well!  (My username is Kypressofbloo, not Kypress Designs. I wasn't going to do the business on instagram but changed my mind. I use the #kypressdesigns on my work posts though!)

I'm getting married at the end of the year and I'm still trying to get disability approved since I'm having issues keeping a full time (or part time) job out of the house and somehow I have followers but no customers. (Which IS fine; not trying to get pity orders!)  This has been an ongoing issue and it's kind of ridiculous. But I know Indiana is an awful state for trying to get disability approved--even for cases more obvious than mine!  I have a lawyer though. So, we'll see how much longer this takes. (I've already been denied a few times and we're going on a year since I initially applied this time around.)

While I have you here, if you aren't following on facebook or instagram yet, here's a few of the pieces I've crocheted recently that are ready to ship out!

Wintery circular scarf, "Teal", $20

Light weight circular scarf, "Peacock", $10

Wintery circular scarves, "Winter Stripes", $20 each
These are all from the same color scheme.
I love variegated yarns!

Wintery circular scarf, "Tartan Stripes", $20
All three of these are from the same skein of yarn even though they look completely different

wintery circular scarf, "Spring Stripes", $20
Another variegated yarn.  I really do love how different these turn out!

light weight circular scarf, "Purple and Green", $10
Help! She needs a new name. I don't like the color name of the yarn. It's called "Echo".
So what should I name her for the shop?

And don't forget that my jewelry is still available as well!  You can also ask to see what is in my stash for custom work.

Kypress Swirls bracelet and earrings, shown in blue

Kypress Swirls set, shown in copper

a lovely red piece I did previously.  I hope to find these beads again to make another

Kypress Medical Update 07/21/15

I am back at the hospital as an inpatient and not due to surgery. The Crohn's Disease has reared it's ugly head and I have been fighting immobilizing pain and nausea since Sunday evening. The pain meds and zofran at home are not helping. 

So I am hooked up to an IV and getting Morphing and Zofran intravenously.  I'm here at least over night, but I am afraid I will be here for a week again. 

I have a procedure scheduled a few counties over next Tuesday morning for the Crohn's (not surgery; that is August 12th), so I have to be free then. If I'm not, maybe they can send me via ambulance to and from? I wonder if they could....

Happy Mother's Day

Today is Mother's Day and I hope everyone is able to spend time with their mom and show her some love. Or, if you are the mom, I hope the children show you the love that you so wonderfully deserve.

To the motherless or childless, know that they are still with you and love you.  Do not grieve but enjoy the day and do things that you think they would have enjoyed.

*knock knock* Anyone there?

I am such a horrible blogger... It's been almost a year since my last post here.
I've been posting here and there on facebook's fan page, but not so much here. I'm sorry!

It's been a bit crazy though. (Not exactly crazy enough to warrant being MIA for a year, but still.)
The Man and I are engaged (again) and we have a house.
It was supposed to be done in November, but due to some issues with building permits and the city we are in, building didn't start until after Thanksgiving. We signed January 30th after a long month and half away from each other--my children and I lived in a very small bedroom at my mom's and he stayed with his mom a VERY long way away.

However, now we are in this A-FREAKING-MAZING house that is almost perfect for us. We wanted more bedrooms (my office and his game room), but we are making due with what could afford. And  it's amazing. I love it here.

I'm working on getting some pieces hashed out and uploaded to the store.  I also need to get a new USB mouse and turn off the pad on my laptop.  This thing keeps jumping around my page and messing with my flow!

I am super excited for spring to be here! While this week isn't looking very promising, I am ready for the nice weather and sunshine and warmth.

***BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY***

Okay, if you would like to win a roses bracelet with your choice of colored beads, comment with your wrist size and color choice!

My birthday was April 24th and the 25th was my graduation ceremony. I want to do something special for the fans because I am in a good mood!

**The wire I use is permanently colored copper wire. **

so just comment below and I will post the winner on May 1.

**edit: may 3, 2014**

Well, only Wizardwu entered! That make it easy to draw the winner! Congrats!

I did it!

Last night was commencement. Even though I received my diploma in January, it didn't feel official until I walked across the stage last night. 

All you people that didn't think I could do it or made it to where I almost didn't, I DID!!!!!!!!

Shop is OPEN

I posted on the Facebook page and in the first blogpost of today, but I didn't update the original blogpost or post a new one. 

The storenvy shop IS open!  I haven't posted new products except for the bears though. I am still taking orders and making customized pieces!

http://kypressdesigns.storenvy.com

***p.s. There's a promos code JUST FOR Facebook fans too.... It pops up during check out. 

PawPaw's Bears

PawPaw's Bears is what we decided to name my stepdad's little hobby business. Currently, I'm selling them for him, but I have been trying to decide how to talk to him about opening his own shop am what not. 

The three bears I had posted are sold and I haven't been given anymore to replenish my stock yet. 

Using refurbished fabrics and hypoallergenic stuffing, PawPaw (what the grand kids all call my dad), makes super fluffy, amazing bears. They don't have eyes or nose attachments due to thee being issues with them coming undone or popping off and causing a choking hazard. 

My daughter has two (that have been left at my exhusband's house) and she is REALLY rough on her stuffed animals. They are just as fluffy as the day dad finished them 5 or so years ago. (I'll post photos of them at the bottom of the page.) 

If he uses clothes, a lot of times he will add the tag from them to the back of the bear so that there are washing instructions or fabric details. My daughter's pink striped bear came from a crib sheet. PawPaw has used pants and 3XL shirts before too.  Again, I'm hoping I will have more to post soon. I have seen his fabric stash. It's rather large. 

The bears are $30 each. I had them set at an introductory price of $20/$25 and there was a promo code on the website for fans that took half off of that as well. 

Add on the free shipping and these are a steal!!!

Update: April 13, 2014

I know I keep saying that I am going to blog and post regularly. I know I also keep failing to do so. Life has been hectic with my new job and my daughter getting into trouble in kindergarten. 

This has become more of a hobby for me than a business. This is mainly because I have not been getting much business or traffic. Of course, that is due to me not posting or creating new pieces. 

I am still working on things, as you can sometimes see from the Facebook page, and I have been posting PawPaw's Bears (blog post to follow).  Currently I am working on a baby blanket for a friend in Florida. I'm excited about it. (Progress picture at top of post.)

The store is still open and I am still making jewelry and crocheting, it just isn't really the livelihood anymore. It would be AMAZING to have business, that is my "mommy money" to splurge on more yarn and beads or things for just me. My paycheck from the job goes to bills, rent, and the children. 

I bought this yarn at The Starstruck Cat Studio in Greenwood, Indiana. It's some pretty awesome yarn. I really enjoy shopping there too. The yarns are all handmade and they have a decent supply of pattern books AND do have some vendors there. I noticed handmade beads made for yarn pieces and some beautiful shawl pins (which reminded me that I still haven't made mine). 

Apologies, again...

I am so, so sorry. Things have just been awful around here. One thing after another, things just keep blowing up in my face. I thought I'd been ready to get back to work taking orders, but I wasn't. I should be up to par now though. Here's to hoping... I don't remember if I posted about it, but my husband asked for a divorce back in September. There is a whole load of drama with that which would be extremely unprofessional for me to post about.  I moved in to my apartment a few days before Halloween. It was a one bedroom, but was okay.
We had issues over custody days, but that's finally been worked out. I moved again right before Christmas (the Friday before) into a two bedroom.  Things are FINALLY settling down around here. I have the kids on the weekends, I have work and school during the week.  I even started dating a really awesome guy! (He lives 700 miles away though...)

I have been able to work on some items, though. Here's some of them--the little girl is my daughter. She loves having her photo taken and as soon as she saw my camera, her eyes lit up!

FINALLY making something for ME!!! It's going to be a throw blanket to go with my pretty red couch..

For a friend's little girl that is on the way (because I made it too small for my one year old niece...)

Full of yarn!

If you have any questions on anything, e-mail me! You know where to find me... I do check the facebook page Kypress Designs regularly, even if I don't post often.  The kids and I were sick this weekend, so nothing much has been done besides vegging and cleaning (that really awesome guy is coming to town for V-day!!!) but I plan on getting back into full crafting mode pronto!

IMPORTANT POST

There's a sale going on at http://www.kypressdesigns.com and if you use the promocode "august50" at http://kypressdesigns.storenvy.com you'll get 50% off items there as well!

And I think that the named url is only going to be open til the end of August. I believe I will be shutting it down then, if not sooner.  The storenvy shop will still be open and I'll still accept custom orders via e-mail or message on the fan page!

Of course, I seriously doubt that anyone is even reading this post.  I don't know if anyone except for a select handful of people have even seen ANY of my posts lately.

Well, it's 3am and my daughter will be up in 3 very short hours if not sooner (sun rises around 6am and she's up when it starts showing). Wish me luck! And go check out the new products I'd been listing!!!!

More photos + Discount!

April of Trio Photography and Design came to my place this morning to take photos of my kiddos in some of my and Babcia's Heart's pieces. (And I may have snuck in a few purses from Faithann's Gifts and More...)  I'm super excited about these pictures even though neither child cooperated very much (Wren was sleepy by the time we got to him--I should've had her do his part first) but Moira had fun and there were no temper tantrums. That's what matters!  I will be sure to post the photos when I get them.

And now for the important part. DISCOUNT! (Imagine I said that like "Flo" from the Progressive commercial...) I kind of missed posted a sale for Independence Day. I'd like to offer a 25% discount on all custom orders payed before July 15th, excluding orders that have a higher discount on them. E-mail me at kypressdesigns@gmail.com or message me on facebook to place your order and talk about what you want.  Once I get the promo code for storenvy made and get the items on the webstore marked down, I will post about that.  However, you know how my track record is--I probably won't get around to it, turthfully. It would be safer to e-mail me!

Now, go enjoy you heat wave, take a dip in the pool, eat that ice cream before it melts all over ya, and try to stay cool!  I'm going to sit here by the air conditioning and try to work on some jewelry before the baby wakes back up....