So I'm throwing myself a little party....

I'm so excited to finally be able to celebrate the release of my very first craft book 

"Crochet Taxidermy, 30 Quirky Patterns from Mouse to Moose" at the Paper + Craft Pantry hosted by my dear friend Pei Sim. Sip on Mimosa's while you browse my new DIY crochet kits, new crochet taxidermy designs and of course my book, all of which will be available to purchase. I hope to see you all there!

xoxo

New tasty pdf's available on etsy

I have some exciting news!!! Since the beginning of this year I've been brainstorming on ways that I can expand this little crochet business of mine into just more than crochet taxidermy heads. Now that I'm officially an Author I figured why stop there?!? Why not just keep on designing more patterns and make them even more accessible to the crochet community. Well, you've seen just some of the examples of my new guys that I'm offering in my kits which will be released along with the unveiling of my re-vamped logo, website and book release party in early September... just in time for the holiday's! I'm super excited and thrilled that everything is all "coming together" nicely. I feel like I've put so much time and effort into creating these designs that I'm really looking forward to enjoying all my hard work. Here's some fun new delicious treats that I have designed and am offering as instant PDF downloads on etsy. I've always loved cute little amigurumi toys and these are super cute and way easy for beginners.

There will be more "sweet treats" to come later on. Be on the lookout for my cute little animal amigurumi kits that are being designed by the lovely Lauren Cooke of Little Skunk Co. They will be available in early September along with he unveiling of my new website and book. 

Shop Nothing but a Pigeon on etsy here.

Pre-order "Crochet Taxidermy" on Amazon here.

My first workshop...

Last month I held my very first crochet 101 workshop ever at the Paper Craft + Pantry. I was both nervous and excited for the day. I had a full class of nine ladies and one gentleman,  two of whom are my close friends that decided to support me and sign up for the class. The hour flew by so quickly and by the time we were deep in to crocheting in the round it was time to start wrapping things up. Each participant got a special little gift at the end of the class as well as all the materials needed to make their set of four coasters. Here's some images that Pei and Allie of The Paper Craft + Pantry captured for me.

If you're interested in learning the basics of crochet and are in the Austin area I'll be offering more classes in the near future. You should check out The Paper + Craft Pantry's website for listings of available classes and dates. There are a bunch of fun workshops that Pei offers hosted by very talented artists. 

xoxo

Taylor

Behind the scenes of my photoshoot with Storey Publishing....

The scariest and most rewarding thing I've ever done in my life thus far was venturing out to North Adams, Massachusetts for my photo shoot with Storey Publishing. I wouldn't call myself "independent" by any means but this last year I have grown leaps and bounds partly due to pushing/challenging myself and living out of my comfort zone. My trip to North Adams was one of those moments in my life that I realized that I'm a lot stronger and braver than I give myself credit for. I learned a lot about myself during the "book writing process". One of the biggest hurdles I have had to overcome within myself is "self doubt". I also learned to not be afraid to ask for what I want and learned to say "no". These may be little things in the eyes of others but to me they are steps to becoming a more confident and independent women... a woman that I didn't know was within me all along.

Here's the beautiful Inn that Storey Pub set me up in. It's called Porches and is beyond the most adorable place I've stayed in. Storey really rolled out the red carpet for me. They set up my plane flight and driver to pick me up at the airport. The hour drive from the Airport to the Inn was breathtakingly beautiful. We drove through little towns, hills and mountains. Gwen Steege (whom I've worked closely with throughout this last year) met me and took me out to a wonderful dinner. 

This is my excited face upon arriving and checking into Porches. The room was amazing and was so luxurious. I felt like a Queen.

I settled in nicely in front of the fire place with this cat and a glass of Malbec. The Inn was so warm and inviting and the staff was beyond accommodating. Even though I missed Matt and wished he could share my experience with me and see everything I was seeing I knew it was something that I was to experience alone and that way okay. 

The next morning I woke up ready to take on the world and met the staff of Storey Pub that have been working so hard with me on my book. I was beyond nervous but excited to meet everyone and to get the photo shoot started. 

Storey Publishing is located in an old textile factory that has been rehabbed into local business's and restaurants and also has a museum as well. It's called Mass MoCa.

Books as far as the eye can see....

After meeting Alethea and Mars (the creative director and photographer) for my photo shoot, we dived right into setting up the images and taking pictures for the "how to" portion of my book. It was really exciting to be able to see Alethea and Mars working as a team to make this book come together. There were moment's throughout the day when I thought to myself, "this can't be all for me, can it?" or "is this really happening?". I had to pinch myself a few times to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

I also became a hand model....

This is the look of utter happiness.....

Alethea doing her thang'.

Gwen, Alethea and Mars. 

As the sun went down we wrapped up the last of the images. It was a full days of work; I have never felt so fulfilled in my life. Writing this book has been an adventure I'll never forget. From the moment I met my Agent Martha (who whipped me into shape) to meeting with Deborah (Publisher for Storey), and working closely with Gwen, Alethea and Mars in North Adams. I still can't believe that I have written a book and that I'll be able to add "Author" to my list of accomplishments. Three years ago if you told me that I would have done all this I wouldn't have believed it. It's amazing how much hard work and dedication truly does pay off. My book "Crochet Taxidermy 30 Quirky Animal Projects, from Mouse to Moose" should be out this Fall in August. 

xoxo 

Pre-order on Amazon

Holiday gift guide

I am beyond thrilled to be a part of this amazing holiday gift guide put together by non other than the talented Chelsea Laine Francis whom I adore! Not only is she the sweetest and kindest of persons but she is also an amazing photographer. A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of working directly with Chelsea who came to my home and photographed me in my humble backyard studio. I was so delighted to see my images, one of which is going to be my portrait for my "artist bio" in my upcoming book due out August of 2016! I can not wait to share my beautiful session with you all! So of course it was a no brainer when Chlesea asked me to be a part of her wonderful gift guide for this holiday season. Um... yes please! There are some amazing artists and makers featured in this gift guide and I'm so proud to have my little jellyfish sitting next to each and every one of them.  

Items featured here for kiddos:  

 1) an 'ice cream swirl' notebook by Denik for doodles and dreams.

2) a letter writing kit by P.S. Paper Shoppe. 

3) a super cool beanie that provides jobs, education and mentorship from Krochet Kids intl. 

4) t-shirts that help kids imitate the best of the best by Wee Rascals.

5) the crochet taxidermy head of a jellyfish by Nothing But a Pigeon

To check out the full feature of this "Gifting Good Guide" hop on over to Chelsea's blog and get all the details. A big thank you to Chelsea and to all the fabulous makers featured in this beautiful spread! I am truly blessed to know many of them. Enjoy!

Crochet strawberry... a free patttern

Howdy folks! I've been gone on vacation for awhile but I'm back with a very deliciously cute strawberry pattern for you. It's fast and fun and makes the perfect little gift for someone you love.

Chain 2. 2sc into the 2nd chain from the hook.

Row1. 2sc in each sc all around. = 12sc. Pull magic circle closed tight so there is no hole.

Row 2-3. 1sc in each 12sc all around. 

Row 4. * 1sc in the 1st sc, 2sc in the 2nd*. = 18sc.

Row 5. *1sc in each sc all around*. = 18sc.

Row 6. *1sc in the 1st 2sc, 2sc in the 3rd.* = 24sc.

Row 7. 1sc in each sc all around. = 24sc.

Now it's time to add the seeds to your little berry. You can use white, yellow or even black yarn for this... feel free to experiment! All you'll need is a tapestry needle and a long piece of string of your choice color of yarn. Sew seed shapes in and out like you are sewing little quarter inch stitches. Repeat until you have your desired look.

Row 8. *1sc in the 1st 2sc, dec into the next st.* Repeat. = 18sc. 

Stuff almost all the way to the top.

Row 9. * 1sc into the 1st sc, dec into the next st.* Repeat. = 12sc.

Row 10. * 1sc in the 1st sc, dec in the next sc.* Repeat. = 8sc.

Stuff the rest of the way.

Row 11. Skip every other sc, sl st in last st pulling through a small tail of yarn. Cut yarn and weave in the loose end. Now it's time to work on our leafy part of the strawberry. 

Chain 2, 6 sc into the 2nd chain from the hook. Pull tight.

Row 1. 2sc in each sc all around. = 12sc.

Row 2. *3dc into the 1st sc, sl st into the 2nd sc*. Repeat.

Sl st in the last sc pulling through a long (12 inch) tail of yarn. Cut excess yarn. 

Now it's time to sew your green little leaf onto your strawberry!!

Place the leafy part on the end of your strawberry (as seen above). Using your tapestry needle weave the long piece of yarn in and out of your strawberry making sure to keep it as close to the green leafy part as possible... this will make it look more neat and clean. After you have finished sl st in the last st and cut yarn leaving a little tail to weave back into the leaf. Voila!

You should have a cute little finished strawberry to put on your shelf or give to someone you adore!

xoxo

Taylor

Behind the scenes of Nothing but a Pigeon...

Why hello there! I recently did some very fun things. First, I attended Pop Shop Houston once again and then I also participated in an Austin Craft Riot takeover of their Instagram account. I had a lot of fun documenting not only my trip to Houston but also a large part of my crochet business Nothing but a Pigeon that many of you all don't get to see on a day to day basis. 

I had way too much fun taking images during Pop Shop Houston's Spring Show.... I even got in a few selfie's.

I also thought it would be fun to take a few images of my Studio that my very talented Husband designed and built for me. He is currently working on a beautiful Farm Table for our Dining room (more on that later). Some of these images are of me working inside the Studio and then a few fun ones that I used for the Austin Craft Riot IG takeover.

I also wanted to touch on a very important project that I've been working on, my very own crochet pattern book that's due to come out in 2016!

I also think it's kinda neat to show everyone what materials that I use and how things actually look before my little critters get constructed and all put together. I'm also helping teach a Photo 101 class for Austin Craft Riot with Chelsea Laine Francis on the 27th of this month... hence the little photo set up I've got going on above. It's super easy to create beautiful and clean photo's using natural light and a simple white background. More on that later.....

Lastly, this was my "peace out" post from my Austin Craft Riot takeover. This is the first ever taxidermy critter that I attempted to crochet. He is a little sad and pathetic but I love him and what he represents... my skills have definitely improved but I like to keep him close to me to remind me of my humble beginning.

xoxo