Down by the Tracks, Photo Shoot Hillsdale, Michigan

While in Michigan, I got to do a family photo shoot with my sister in law who is also a photographer, Magnolia, cousin Amy, cousin Aleecia, Josh and I, Nena (gramma) and some friends Brian and Rachel.   We had a great time and got a ton of great shots, I have added several of my favorites here.  The light was just perfect for the shots, if only Magnolia could be as interested in the camera as our niece Aleecia is.  

The sun was setting and it was just cool enough to be bearable as we set up our props and started snapping shots.  Even the animals were interested in what we were doing and they came out to check us out, a mother deer with her two fawns complete with spots, a baby squirrel and another deer from the other side of the tracks popped out to say 'hi.'  It was a beautiful sight and made for great photos and memories. 

Green Mountain Summit, 6,800 ft, and a pack of coyotes

Bright Blue Colorado Sky; photo on etsy

On Friday, I really needed to get outside and hike; I had been cooped up in the house all week working on a new line of hats and hiking belts for my website, but what I really needed was to get outside and try them out.
It was a balmy day in January, but very windy, so I decided that I'd stay close to home and head over to Green Mountain.  North Green Mountain is visible from my front deck, and I can see numerous trails on the north side of the mountain, but I haven't driven through the neighborhoods to locate those trails on the mountainside before.  I decided Friday was the day, and I drove south across 6th Ave, and up into the neighborhoods on the North side of Green Mountain in search of the access to the Open Space.
After driving around for just a short time, my trail finding skills proved successful, I found the neighborhood access which connects with all of the trails visible on the north side of the mountain; stepped out of the car into the wind and decided that I'd hike to the top today!

More Snowshoeing! Clear Creek County's Winter Fun!

Glittery snow sparkling in the sun

I have been dreaming of a white Christmas since September, when we decided we would stay in Colorado this year for the holidays instead of going 'home' to Michigan as we usually do.  Unfortunately for me, the Front Range didn't get a drop of snow, and in fact, it was in the mid 50s with sun and I was hot in my sweatshirt and jeans taking the dogs for a walk.  Josh and I decided since the snow wasn't going to find us, we were going to find the snow, and we drove into the mountains on I-70 west in search of some snowshoeing weather.  It wasn't hard to find a lot of snow about 35 minutes west of Golden, the mountains got slammed with a storm that measured in feet.  We drove to the Bakerville Exit off I-70 and there was plenty of snow on the south side of the highway to snowshoe on the Bakerville/Loveland trail that spans 5 miles.  It's popular in the winter for cross country skiing, snowshoeing and even some winter hiking.  In the summer, this is popular for mountain bikers and hikers.

Organic fabric and The Bridge in Concert

This was my first full week off work, and I must say, it didn't go exactly like I planned.  It's really hard to give structure to your day and get the things done that you need, plus picking up the house, sewing, gardening, etc.  It will take some time to adjust to, I guess.  

I did get a lot of sewing done earlier this week, and took some photos of the new items.  But I still need to take some more pics today before I can post them all.  

Since I decided to quit my job to focus on my sewing and writing, I have been trying to decide where exactly my sewing niche will be.  I love working with organic fabrics, hemp, and all eco-friendly; but I also have a ton of fabric already purchased that is not organic.  But, I think creating an organic line of clothing will compliment the hiking/writing side of my business.  After a lot of thought, I have decided to work with the fabric that I currently own and use it up as much as I can, but I will not purchase any more fabric unless its organic and eco-friendly or recycled fabric.  I think this gives a good mix of using up what I already have and then only purchasing fabric that is organic.  I mean, wasting fabric isn't eco-friendly, right?
After coming to this decision, finally, I have been really motivated to sew and use up all this fabric that I have in my house, just so I can go ahead and buy more soon :)  I love fabric!

Tonight, my favorite band, The Bridge, comes in town for two nights.  They are playing at Cervantes in Denver on Friday and Saturday nights.   My cousin Patrick is the saxophone player for The Bridge, and Josh and I love to watch them whenever they come into town.  Last summer we even traveled to Oregon to watch a few of their shows.  They are *awesome* and you can check out their music on their website here. 
Not only do we get to see a great band tonight, but when The Bridge comes into town, it means that I get to hang out with my cousin Patrick!  When we were kids, I remember each year at Christmas when they would come home to Michigan, I would be so excited to see Patrick and his brother JD that I would constantly ask, "when are they getting here, when are they going to come;"  like any excited child ready to play :)  And I still feel the same way now!  I hope to see you at The Bridge tonight if you are in the area :)

Organic fabric and The Bridge in Concert

This was my first full week off work, and I must say, it didn't go exactly like I planned.  It's really hard to give structure to your day and get the things done that you need, plus picking up the house, sewing, gardening, etc.  It will take some time to adjust to, I guess.  

I did get a lot of sewing done earlier this week, and took some photos of the new items.  But I still need to take some more pics today before I can post them all.  

Since I decided to quit my job to focus on my sewing and writing, I have been trying to decide where exactly my sewing niche will be.  I love working with organic fabrics, hemp, and all eco-friendly; but I also have a ton of fabric already purchased that is not organic.  But, I think creating an organic line of clothing will compliment the hiking/writing side of my business.  After a lot of thought, I have decided to work with the fabric that I currently own and use it up as much as I can, but I will not purchase any more fabric unless its organic and eco-friendly or recycled fabric.  I think this gives a good mix of using up what I already have and then only purchasing fabric that is organic.  I mean, wasting fabric isn't eco-friendly, right?
After coming to this decision, finally, I have been really motivated to sew and use up all this fabric that I have in my house, just so I can go ahead and buy more soon :)  I love fabric!

Tonight, my favorite band, The Bridge, comes in town for two nights.  They are playing at Cervantes in Denver on Friday and Saturday nights.   My cousin Patrick is the saxophone player for The Bridge, and Josh and I love to watch them whenever they come into town.  Last summer we even traveled to Oregon to watch a few of their shows.  They are *awesome* and you can check out their music on their website here. 
Not only do we get to see a great band tonight, but when The Bridge comes into town, it means that I get to hang out with my cousin Patrick!  When we were kids, I remember each year at Christmas when they would come home to Michigan, I would be so excited to see Patrick and his brother JD that I would constantly ask, "when are they getting here, when are they going to come;"  like any excited child ready to play :)  And I still feel the same way now!  I hope to see you at The Bridge tonight if you are in the area :)

A New Direction for Hip-Threads

I have been thinking a lot about hip-threads.com lately, and what sort of direction I want to take the website in. While I love making patchwork clothing, it doesn't sell as well as it used to and its time to make a change. (don't worry, I am not stopping patchwork forever, and will always take custom orders).
My friend Laura gave me a good piece of advise about a month ago that I have been thinking about constantly. "You have to find your niche" and then another piece of advise from my father given years ago, "make a decision and stick with it". Taking those together, my new mantra is; "Find your niche and stick with it". So what does that mean? I love to blog about hiking, sew patchwork, make cute accessories, knit, recycle vintage clothing, making soap, candles, etc, etc, how do I tie all that together and create my niche; and what do I eliminate in the process?
While I don't have my answer completely yet, I finally figured out the direction I'd like to go in! I'd really like to create a line of clothing and accessories for the outdoorsy girl made from organic or eco-friendly materials, and tie that together with my hiking blog.

One dream that I have always had is to write a book, and lately my mind wanders to writing a hiking book. The angle of the book I am still not sure, hiking in Colorado, hiking the Front Range, hiking Colorado 14ers, outdoor hiking/camping in Colorado, a womans guide to hiking/camping, hiking peaks in Colorado, or hiking with your dog in Colorado? Lots of ideas, no "niche" there yet.
Another idea to tie into my blog, is to write pamphlets for hikes which have little or no information on them, and sell them on my blog for $1-2. It would include a printable map with photos or directions, plus camping in the area around the hike, etc. Another idea from my brilliant and very successful entrepreneur friend Laura.
While I have been pondering all of these ideas lately, I stumbled across the TV show called Sharks a couple of nights ago. Entrepreneurs pitch their idea to zillionaires and they decide if they want to invest in the company or not. The investors said a couple of things that really made sense. 1. You can't put all of your time into an idea without knowing if people will buy it, you have to test the market first. 2. You can't have your hands in too many pots, first start with one thing that does well, then branch out to other similar things.
Duh! Seems obvious, right? But maybe I haven't considered these things like I should have. Maybe my idea of outdoorsy girl eco-clothes isn't a winner? I guess I should test the market first, and find out if people would buy an eco-friendly line of hiking and outdoorsy gear, and accessories. I'd love to hear some feedback from all of *you*.
I also consider selling all of these cute accessories you see at Farmers Markets in Denver this summer, but since I haven't sold very many online yet, maybe this is a dud idea, I don't know? But I am excited to take the chance on it, and give it a shot.
Any comments, suggestions, ideas, are *much* appreciated.

A New Direction for Hip-Threads

I have been thinking a lot about hip-threads.com lately, and what sort of direction I want to take the website in. While I love making patchwork clothing, it doesn't sell as well as it used to and its time to make a change. (don't worry, I am not stopping patchwork forever, and will always take custom orders).
My friend Laura gave me a good piece of advise about a month ago that I have been thinking about constantly. "You have to find your niche" and then another piece of advise from my father given years ago, "make a decision and stick with it". Taking those together, my new mantra is; "Find your niche and stick with it". So what does that mean? I love to blog about hiking, sew patchwork, make cute accessories, knit, recycle vintage clothing, making soap, candles, etc, etc, how do I tie all that together and create my niche; and what do I eliminate in the process?
While I don't have my answer completely yet, I finally figured out the direction I'd like to go in! I'd really like to create a line of clothing and accessories for the outdoorsy girl made from organic or eco-friendly materials, and tie that together with my hiking blog.

One dream that I have always had is to write a book, and lately my mind wanders to writing a hiking book. The angle of the book I am still not sure, hiking in Colorado, hiking the Front Range, hiking Colorado 14ers, outdoor hiking/camping in Colorado, a womans guide to hiking/camping, hiking peaks in Colorado, or hiking with your dog in Colorado? Lots of ideas, no "niche" there yet.
Another idea to tie into my blog, is to write pamphlets for hikes which have little or no information on them, and sell them on my blog for $1-2. It would include a printable map with photos or directions, plus camping in the area around the hike, etc. Another idea from my brilliant and very successful entrepreneur friend Laura.
While I have been pondering all of these ideas lately, I stumbled across the TV show called Sharks a couple of nights ago. Entrepreneurs pitch their idea to zillionaires and they decide if they want to invest in the company or not. The investors said a couple of things that really made sense. 1. You can't put all of your time into an idea without knowing if people will buy it, you have to test the market first. 2. You can't have your hands in too many pots, first start with one thing that does well, then branch out to other similar things.
Duh! Seems obvious, right? But maybe I haven't considered these things like I should have. Maybe my idea of outdoorsy girl eco-clothes isn't a winner? I guess I should test the market first, and find out if people would buy an eco-friendly line of hiking and outdoorsy gear, and accessories. I'd love to hear some feedback from all of *you*.
I also consider selling all of these cute accessories you see at Farmers Markets in Denver this summer, but since I haven't sold very many online yet, maybe this is a dud idea, I don't know? But I am excited to take the chance on it, and give it a shot.
Any comments, suggestions, ideas, are *much* appreciated.