Scrabble Letter Bag

During Easter weekend I played a rousing game of Scrabble with my aunt and uncle who brought their own Scrabble game and Official Scrabble Dictionary with them on their visit (my family is serious about Scrabble). During the game, it was brought to my attention that there was a huge slit in the side of the bag that holds the letters. My mind immediately began reeling and I decided then and there that I was going to sew a draw-string style pouch for these Scrabble letters before all of the "U's" tragically fell out and got lost rendering the "Q's" useless (well, almost useless- any Scrabble player worth their salt has memorized all of the acceptable "Q" without "U" words that can be played in a pinch). The fabric choice had been made for me earlier that same day during an emergency "my-coupons-expire-today" trip to the fabric store. My aunt, who was with me (I dragged everyone along because hey, who doesn't love a trip to a fabric store?), had spotted the fun retro-looking fabric and loved it but we couldn't find anything to match it up with so I passed on it. Well, I went back the next week and, despite my screaming daughter (yes, I've become that person at the store who everyone wishes would make their kid be quiet), managed to hunt down what I consider a good match. I did a little research on drawstring pouches and the rest is history.

Even More Dishcloths

This lovely citrus trio color combo of dishcloths is currently up for sale in my etsy store (www.duckinghampalace.etsy.com). These were so much fun to knit because the colors are so "happy." I guess this was really the first time I was aware of the yarn color affecting my knitting mood. This knowledge will surely impact my future yarn decisions.

Forty-Six Cents, the Cost of Bittersweet

As some of you probably know, the Tall Mouse store in Cerritos is closing. They have been liquidating for about two months, gradually increasing the amount of the store wide discount which is now up to 90% off (tomorrow is the last day they will be doing business). I stopped by yesterday on my way to band practice to see if there was anything left. There wasn't much. I wandered around for a few minutes and managed to find a few odds and ends that I decided were worth picking up and made my way to the register. Most of the people in line were buying cart-loads of who knows what- caught up in the frenzy of the sale, making crazy purchases they would never have paid full price for. As I stood in line, I resisted the temptation to go back and load up on Christmas ornaments, butterfly nets, and slightly irregular T-shirts. In the end, I managed to escape with only the items in the picture below, spending less than half a dollar (I photographed the receipt for proof).





Farewell to you Tall Mouse of Cerritos. You weren't always the best deal in town but you had a unique selection and your staff members were always friendly and helpful. I will probably save a lot of time and money once you're gone but I will miss the inspiration I used to get from wandering up and down your aisles.

Tall Mouse does have two other stores, one in Laguna Niguel and one in Yorba Linda; however, I received an email today informing me that the Laguna Niguel store will now be liquidating too in order to keep the Yorba Linda store up and running.

More Play-Doh Mat/Bags

I have managed to make more play-doh mat/bags with intent to sell them in my etsy store. I have included photos of all the fabric combos I currently have, as well as the step-by-step "instruction" photos I plan on including with each post on etsy. I'm still not sure I'm completely satisfied with how the pictures came out- I had trouble figuring out the best way to show these. I feel like something may be getting lost in the photography. Do the pictures make sense, is it clear how the mat/bag works? As usual, I welcome any comments or suggestions.