Save The Date :)

We'll have more wedding info posted as our plans start to come together!

Friday Features:

As many of you know, I am MOST excited about the arrival of my 3 new sheep this week! For 2 weeks, I have been slaving away over my sheep-shed (which is, in true Lauren fashion) WAY cuter and more designed than any sheep-shed need be. *pictures soon to follow* So since my mind is over consumed with thoughts of sheep...this Friday Features is only fitting! Enjoy the cuteness!

black sheep slippers by jdbaby

How've ewe been? stamp by Rubberhedgehog

Organic baby blanket by SewnNatural

Bed set by duuda

Sheep purse pattern by sonicka

Counting sheep wall art by tweetheartwallart

Sheep genius by jessicamaehendr

Giveaway time!

Phew, we're back from California!! What a whirlwind, one-week trip featuring (but not limited to) incidents such as:
Lauren getting food poisoning (boo)
AJ graduating college (yeah!)
Aaron getting a 24 hr stomach flu (boo)
Clubbing so hard I lost my hearing for 2 days (yeah! and boo)
Our rental car window getting broken in and my wallet being stolen (big boo)

But we also got tons of great friend time amidst all the calamity, and that was SUPER fun!!

Soooo...thats my excuse for being 6 days behind on my April Giveaway Event :)
I'm happy to announce the 7 winners are..............
KarenH
Joanna
Scott
S. Muller
Blenda
KatieS
Stacy Owens
Congradulations you luckies!! :D

I will message the winners to collect addresses. Thanks for following my blog, and hopefully now that we're getting into summer I'll have more interesting and unique projects to share!

Adding No-Slip bottoms to slippers

Wool is an amazing material: it wicks moisture and keeps you warm even when wet. Felting the wool makes the material even stronger and more durable! Felted slippers are simply awesome for wearing around the house!


But just like any fabric, it will wear thin over time. To lengthen the life of the slippers, I think its imperative that some reinforcement is added to the soles. This is how I did it for my slipper design:


I bought a few yards of this Jiffy Grip fabric (what is on the bottom of kids' footed pajamas) for $6 a yard from Joggles.com. I usually like making the soles of my slippers in a contrasting color, so I really wanted to make the no-slip pads as small and shapely as I could so they wouldn't detract from the colors of my slippers.

I traced the bottom of a slipper onto the fabric to get a rough shape to begin with. I continued trimming the pad down until I got the size and shape I was looking for. The pad covers all the hard wear spots of your foot without covering the entire sole. An L shaped pad for the ball of the foot, and a small pad for the heel:

I then generously cover the pads with a silicone caulk. This helps thicken, strengthen, and adhere the pad to the felted wool. I've seen people smear silicone sealant directly to the bottom of their slipper to act as the non-slip surface. I believe this would work fine, but it looks messy and unfinished to me.

I squish the pads to the slipper sole in the right spots and let the silicone set for 24 hours. I then hand stitch the pads to the slipper. This takes me about 1 hour per slipper! But I really think its important. Yes, the silicone will keep the pads on, but without the stitching, I believe that over time the edges will peel up and be unsightly, and cause you to trip.

Mending a hole in your slipper using roving and a felting needle:

Put one layer of roving on the outside of the hole and a foam pad on the inside of the slipper. Needle felt this layer, then add a second layer of roving perpendicular to the first layer and continue felting with the needle. Turn the slipper inside out and repeat these steps to felt roving to the inside of the hole. This will re-thicken the slipper in the damaged area so that when you put the non-slip pad on, there won't be a cold or thin spot where the hole once was.

This slipper has a hot spot that needs mending.

The light brown roving on this slipper still needs a bit more felting before being covered with the no-slip pad. The roving won't be visible when the slipper is finished.

Friday Features:

Really wonderful pieces found on etsy using the search critera:

.....bird on a wire.....

Bird headband by meganleedesigns

Belt Buckle by bmused

Birds on a Wire Necklace by janeeroberti

Blue Birds Print by blendastudio

Scrabble Tile Pendant by ItsAllAboutThePrint

Bird homes by mamapainter

Silk clutch by redrubyrose

April giveaway!

Everybody loves a free gift! By 'following' my blog, you are entering to win a free treat from The Beachcomber Studio! On April 30th, I will randomly select 7 winners from all the members of this blog to receive a mini flower pin.

This pin is a new design for me, a perfect piece of flare! :) The pin-back is nice and small, so when wearing your pin, as I am on these fab fuzzy grey sleeves, the flower looks as though stitched on and you don't notice the pin part. They look great pinned to your shirt, or scarf, or even in your hair! Gentlemen, it makes a wonderful gift for your sweetie, so don't be shy about joining the blog!

Meet the Members of Beachcomber Lane

This is me. Lauren. And this is my blog!

Every year that passes, I find myself transforming more and more away from the crazy and wild college-student life I used to lead, into the semi-secluded, homestead-ish life I currently live and LOVE! I love to create. Be it knitting, designing, gardening, or constructing, I love to create something new. Unique, unusual, original...thats what draws me in!

In this blog, you can follow my two passions: the remodel of our Beach House, and the production and evolution of The Beachcomber Studio!

This is him. Aaron. And he's a guest star in my blog!

Aaron is my partner in every sense of the word. He's my best friend, my biggest supporter, and he keeps me happy and light hearted! Aaron works a month on/month off schedule...so part of my motivation is to wow and shock him with what I've done in the month hes been away from home :D
Aaron LOVES to fish. Any day on the water is a good day. And a day on the water with a king salmon, a limit on halibut, or rock fish... now that is a GREAT day to Aaron!

This is them. The Pugs!! They sleep a lot.

And Jordan the Cat!! She sleeps a lot.

We all live here together on Beachcomber Lane in our cozy little house. We're actively remodeling the house as we live here, which is both challenging and interesting. Follow our progress on the Beach House Remodel page!