Chickenpants? That's what she said.

We've been watching a lot of The Office lately, so I guess it was only a matter of time before this happened:

Michael Scott Chickenpants, Regional Manager of Dunder Chicken Paper Company.
Aw, yeah.
Of course, there is also a Pam and a Jim...Dwight, alas is still on my desk.
Pam sports curly hair and a Re-Ment pencil:

Jim sports a slightly askew tie, as well as tall skinnyness.

Their pants are all made from suiting material, to give them a suitably office-y feel.
I think I'd better get back to work. I have a feeling Dwight Chickenpants is going to hold his tardiness against me. And probably try to have me fired.

3 Ways To Make 2010 the Best Year Ever – Part Three

Okay. You've set your goals. You've plotted them out with a project planning sheet. Now it's time to set things in motion.
First, a wee disclaimer. Managing time is NOT something that comes naturally to me. I really have to work at it. I'm really not an expert, but I am always researching and trying to get better. Here's a few things that I've picked up that help.

✯ What to do with those Project Planning Sheets?
You've filled them out! Awesome. However, they will do you no good at all if you just stuff them in a drawer somewhere.
Start making those projects real by writing onto your calendar the tasks you broke down. It's okay if you don't know how long a task will take. You can always adjust. The important thing is to give them the time and attention they deserve.

✯ Overscheduling:
I am queen of the over schedulers. Maybe you are, too. I finally realized that while there may indeed be a million things that need to get done, it's only physically possible to do a few of them a day. This year, I am trying very hard to keep my to-do list for the day to 5 items or less. If I can get more done, great. If not, that's okay too. It might be nice to feel like I've 'finished' work for the day once in awhile. ^-^

✯ Lists:
Lists are my friend. Oh, how I love lists. However, sometimes things stay on the list forever and never seem to get done.
One thing that seems to help is putting due dates on tasks. Another thing that helps is putting a time estimate on each task. That daunting email/phone call doesn't seem quite so bad when you realize it will only take you 15 minutes.

✯ Stay inspired!
Keep your goals in front of you. Literally. Write/print them out. Make 'em pretty. Tack them up where you can see them every day.

One site that I really find helpful for organizational inspiration is 43 Folders. The aim of the site is to help you to do what you do better, and not waste your time. (That said, of course you can waste hours there. But that's not the point.)

Go forth and be awesome!

3 Ways To Make 2010 the Best Year Ever - Part Three

Okay. You've set your goals. You've plotted them out with a project planning sheet. Now it's time to set things in motion.
First, a wee disclaimer. Managing time is NOT something that comes naturally to me. I really have to work at it. I'm really not an expert, but I am always researching and trying to get better. Here's a few things that I've picked up that help.

✯ What to do with those Project Planning Sheets?
You've filled them out! Awesome. However, they will do you no good at all if you just stuff them in a drawer somewhere.
Start making those projects real by writing onto your calendar the tasks you broke down. It's okay if you don't know how long a task will take. You can always adjust. The important thing is to give them the time and attention they deserve.

✯ Overscheduling:
I am queen of the over schedulers. Maybe you are, too. I finally realized that while there may indeed be a million things that need to get done, it's only physically possible to do a few of them a day. This year, I am trying very hard to keep my to-do list for the day to 5 items or less. If I can get more done, great. If not, that's okay too. It might be nice to feel like I've 'finished' work for the day once in awhile. ^-^

✯ Lists:
Lists are my friend. Oh, how I love lists. However, sometimes things stay on the list forever and never seem to get done.
One thing that seems to help is putting due dates on tasks. Another thing that helps is putting a time estimate on each task. That daunting email/phone call doesn't seem quite so bad when you realize it will only take you 15 minutes.

✯ Stay inspired!
Keep your goals in front of you. Literally. Write/print them out. Make 'em pretty. Tack them up where you can see them every day.

One site that I really find helpful for organizational inspiration is 43 Folders. The aim of the site is to help you to do what you do better, and not waste your time. (That said, of course you can waste hours there. But that's not the point.)

Go forth and be awesome!

3 Ways To Make 2010 the Best Year Ever – Part Two

Yesterday I talked about the Etsy Goal Spreadsheet, and the importance of setting and tracking goals.
Okay, you've got goals. Now what?
If you're anything like me, you probably have more goals and ideas than you know what to do with. And maybe you follow through isn't *ahem* always the best. (Or is that just me?) I've found that simply writing these goals down on my to do list does not get them done. They're too big and overwhelming. So I took a page from traditional project planning but made it less boring and easier. You need to get the goal out of your head, onto paper, and then one more thing. You've got to break it down into do-able steps.
Enter the Project Planning Worksheet. Don't let the capital letters fool you, this is simple.

Here's what you do.
□ In the Project line, write down your goal/project/thing you want to do.
□ In the Description line, write down (briefly) your idea for the end product/effect/what you hope to accomplish.
□ In the Steps section, you start breaking it down. What is the first thing you would need to do to accomplish this? What's the second? And so on. It might help to work your way backwards if you have no idea. (i.e. start from the end project and work your way in steps back to the beginning.) Try to make each step a do-able chunk: something you could put down on your calendar/to-do list and actually accomplish.

Click here to download the Project Planning Worksheet.
When the new window pops up, click on Download (At the top left of the page). Then print it out & use it! As always, feel free to print & share & forward willy nilly, but tell 'em http://chickenpants.net made it.

3 Ways To Make 2010 the Best Year Ever - Part Two

Yesterday I talked about the Etsy Goal Spreadsheet, and the importance of setting and tracking goals.
Okay, you've got goals. Now what?
If you're anything like me, you probably have more goals and ideas than you know what to do with. And maybe you follow through isn't *ahem* always the best. (Or is that just me?) I've found that simply writing these goals down on my to do list does not get them done. They're too big and overwhelming. So I took a page from traditional project planning but made it less boring and easier. You need to get the goal out of your head, onto paper, and then one more thing. You've got to break it down into do-able steps.
Enter the Project Planning Worksheet. Don't let the capital letters fool you, this is simple.

Here's what you do.
□ In the Project line, write down your goal/project/thing you want to do.
□ In the Description line, write down (briefly) your idea for the end product/effect/what you hope to accomplish.
□ In the Steps section, you start breaking it down. What is the first thing you would need to do to accomplish this? What's the second? And so on. It might help to work your way backwards if you have no idea. (i.e. start from the end project and work your way in steps back to the beginning.) Try to make each step a do-able chunk: something you could put down on your calendar/to-do list and actually accomplish.

Click here to download the Project Planning Worksheet.
When the new window pops up, click on Download (At the top left of the page). Then print it out & use it! As always, feel free to print & share & forward willy nilly, but tell 'em http://chickenpants.net made it.

3 Ways To Make 2010 the Best Year Ever – Part One

This is kind of a follow up to the post I published much earlier about the Etsy Goal Spreadsheet. I actually stuck to it for the whole year(!), and it has been my best Etsy sales year ever. Coincidence? Maybe. I definitely feel that it helped me to not only set a goal, but to keep working at it all year long. Although I *ahem* did not actually reach my audacious goal, I got a lot farther than I think I otherwise would have.
And here's the really awesome extra benefit. I was feeling sort of down on myself: "Why isn't my marketing working? What am I doing wrong? What's wrong with me?" etc etc. Then I did the numbers. I tallied up all my Etsy sales that I had made in 2009 (so far!). And then, just for fun, I went back and did the previous two years. It was an eye opener.
Without divulging my (pretty modest) numbers, here's the result:
2009 - I nearly doubled my sales over 2008
2008 - Over 3 times the sales of 2007
2007- I was just getting started, and sold 25 items.
In other words, whatever the heck I'm doing is actually working, albeit maybe not always as fast & dramatic as I'd like.

HERE'S WHERE IT APPLIES TO YOU: Keep records of your goals! You might be quite happily surprised at the end of a seemingly crummy year just how well you did, and how much better than the year before. Go back and tally up your sales for previous years (yes, I know this is a pain. It's worth it!). Become conscious of just how well you've done, and grateful. Set a goal for 2010. And then, we're going to kick 2010's butt.

And I have a little present for you. It's the 2010 Etsy Goal Spreadsheet. Enjoy it and use it!
Click here to download.
(This will take you to a new window. Click on FILE, then DOWNLOAD AS. Feel free to share & change this willy nilly, but please let people know you found it here: http://chickenpants.net Thanks!)
For instructions on using the spreadsheet, check out the earlier post.
The goal is set at 500, but feel free to change that to whatever your goal actually is.

***UPDATE 1/4/10- The weirdness with the dates has been fixed. They are now accurate and for the current year. Sheesh! Crazyness.***


Tomorrow, I'm coming back with a new tool to share with you. Stay tuned.

3 Ways To Make 2010 the Best Year Ever - Part One

This is kind of a follow up to the post I published much earlier about the Etsy Goal Spreadsheet. I actually stuck to it for the whole year(!), and it has been my best Etsy sales year ever. Coincidence? Maybe. I definitely feel that it helped me to not only set a goal, but to keep working at it all year long. Although I *ahem* did not actually reach my audacious goal, I got a lot farther than I think I otherwise would have.
And here's the really awesome extra benefit. I was feeling sort of down on myself: "Why isn't my marketing working? What am I doing wrong? What's wrong with me?" etc etc. Then I did the numbers. I tallied up all my Etsy sales that I had made in 2009 (so far!). And then, just for fun, I went back and did the previous two years. It was an eye opener.
Without divulging my (pretty modest) numbers, here's the result:
2009 - I nearly doubled my sales over 2008
2008 - Over 3 times the sales of 2007
2007- I was just getting started, and sold 25 items.
In other words, whatever the heck I'm doing is actually working, albeit maybe not always as fast & dramatic as I'd like.

HERE'S WHERE IT APPLIES TO YOU: Keep records of your goals! You might be quite happily surprised at the end of a seemingly crummy year just how well you did, and how much better than the year before. Go back and tally up your sales for previous years (yes, I know this is a pain. It's worth it!). Become conscious of just how well you've done, and grateful. Set a goal for 2010. And then, we're going to kick 2010's butt.

And I have a little present for you. It's the 2010 Etsy Goal Spreadsheet. Enjoy it and use it!
Click here to download.
(This will take you to a new window. Click on FILE, then DOWNLOAD AS. Feel free to share & change this willy nilly, but please let people know you found it here: http://chickenpants.net Thanks!)
For instructions on using the spreadsheet, check out the earlier post.
The goal is set at 500, but feel free to change that to whatever your goal actually is.

***UPDATE 1/4/10- The weirdness with the dates has been fixed. They are now accurate and for the current year. Sheesh! Crazyness.***


Tomorrow, I'm coming back with a new tool to share with you. Stay tuned.

Obsession of the moment: Bunny Mouths

Oh, the weird search results I am going to be getting in Google Analytics for this post.
But! Anyway! Bunny mouths! Is there anything cuter? As a bunny owner who is constantly trying to photograph said bunny, there is nothing more difficult to capture than the bunny mouth*. Here's my best photo to date:

Clenchy!

One photo is simply not enough, of course. Internet searches to the rescue! Here's the most interesting/cutest things I found:

A quick search on the internets turned up a site called, yes Bunnymouth.com. It appears to be a collaborative homepage for a few illustrators.


Penny Lane
Originally uploaded by Steffen Jakob

Argylewhale, maker of impossibly cute bunny artwork, even has a bunny mouth tattoo!

For starters...
Originally uploaded by Justin and Elise

A Big Smile
Originally uploaded by RosyBunny

Ashley White Jacobsen knows her away around capturing a bunny mouth in paint, too:



Stand up
Originally uploaded by RosyBunny

And of course, if you have cute bunny mouth linkage, send it over! (By way of commenting below)

*Except of course, for the ever elusive bunny tounge!

lola with tounge!
Originally uploaded by mupton

Notes from the Japantown Re-Ment Bender of Late '09

It all started with Dan finding out that 20th Century Boys was playing at a new theater in Japantown. We do love the Japanese-movies-based-on-manga-we've-never-read genre. That combined with the promise of a new theater inside a new 4 story shop/gallery was too much to resist.
This is the part where I wish I had bunches of photos to share with you. Alas, most of the shops in Japantown forbid photography. Lame.
First stop was Super-7, just to make sure they hadn't started stocking Blythes or something. (They haven't.)

NEW PEOPLE Grand Opening Day
Originally uploaded by NEW PEOPLE

And then, New People, the great big new shop/gallery/movie theater. So much great stuff! There's even the sole American outpost of Baby The Stars Shine Bright, in case you need some Lolita gear.
And now, in lieu of a photo of a Chickenpants in front of Lolita stuff, a re-enactment:
Me: I feel embarrassed just being in this store. And old.
Dan: Me too.
Me: But boy, if I was a 16 year old Japanese girl, I'd totally wear this stuff.
Dan: Me too.
Me: What?
Dan: What?
Me: That's not at all disturbing.

Then onward to Kinokuniya Bookstore, where I started shaking box after box of Re-ment. Books? Oh, I guess they have amazing books, too.
A friendly set of art students helped me discern which box was most likely to hold the coveted winged pig toy. (It worked!) (What winged pig toy you ask? I can't recall the name, and I threw the box out. Smart!)
I managed to get the trench coat I really wanted out of one of the clothes blind boxes. (Yes!!)
I finally picked up a Sonny Angel figure, too. I got the giraffe.
And to top it all off, the little orange night stands were half off. Score!
Okay, this is the part where I tell you that the lighting in our house has been weird because of the weather, and I don't yet have a photo of the Re-Ment goodies.
Best post ever!

Oh, right. And we did see 20th Century Boys, which was the whole point of driving to San Francisco in the first place. It was really good! If you're in the city, or near enough, you should totally go! Support this neat little theater.
The end.

New Absolutely Small Goodies

Last week saw the release of Chickenpants #260, Grace. Which came at a really weird time, as the shop was then at 259 sales. So Chickenpants #260 could have been sale #260. It didn't work out that way, but that's okay. ^-^

I also listed a new plush bird named Finnegan:

And, maybe most excitingly, I released the first new Chickenpants Limited print in way too long, Snowed In:

I have plans for some great new prints for 2010! Actually, I've got rather a lot of plans swirling around in my head right now. I'm even doing an end of decade clear off all tables/desks clean up/organization effort right now. A herculean task, let me tell you.

Oh! And! I put the remaining simple style Chickenpants/Blythe capelets on sale.

Snatch 'em while you can. I've moved on to a totally different pattern. No more of these ones will be made.

Anyway, one last thing to share with you: the LAST Chickenpants button pack!

I am just about cleaned out of all the Chickenpants sticker/magnet/hair clippie goods, actually...time to order some more in fresh new designs!

Inspiration Friday

Geekology has been keeping me very happy, with posts like:
Star Wars Weather

and
My Son Must Wear This
Every day is Inspiration Friday over there. Er, if you're nerdy, that is.

(ok, Star Wars weather is actually just a link to the Star Wars Weather page. I am too lazy to come up with words doing other link making blahblah)

The other thing I want to bring up for Inspiration Friday is CLEMENTINES:

(photo from here)
It's Clemen-time! They're juicy & perfect. In fact, I'm eating one right now. My pugs are yapping at my feet in hopes of me giving them some.

Mmm. Juicy citrusy goodness.

Gone postal.

Hey there! Just a quick note to let you know that AT LAST, I have figured out a way to offer expedited shipping in the shop.
Boo. Yah!

Simply add this to your cart, and you'll receive an upgrade to Priority Mail, as well as high priority me-going-to-the-post-office-the-same-day-if-you-order-early-enough-ness.
Not bad!

Let's Go Hoodie Shopping

Inspired by yesterday's post about be-hoodied monsters, I thought I'd run around and see what the interwebs have to offer us humans.
My picks are all biased by the fact that I'm a.) short and b.) going to wear the living daylights out of this thing, but mostly indoors while slinging fuzz & paint around.
In other words, I'm looking for something possibly flattering, but not so dear that I'd be afraid to thrash it.

This Plush Team hoodie has been on my "to buy" list forever:


Although not as snuggly, this knitted yellow one from Mod Cloth is darling:

The only thing: good grief, look at the length of those arms! I'd have to fold those things over twice to get it to fit me. (Or, you know, hem them.)

This one by DearPony has really cute details:


This Dust Bunnies hoodie over at Shanalogic is super cute:


Stick to coffee & alcohol may be my favorite Engrish of all time. And look, I could wear it every day!


Do you know of any super cute hoodies? Post the link below! I want to see more!

Here be monsters

I've been a little obsessed with making these be-hoodied monsters lately. Heck, I've been more than a little obsessed with hoodies in general lately. Maybe it's because I only have the one at home, and it's software swag, and my bunny chewed a hole in the arm, and I wear it all the time, and it is ugly, and I want a new, cute hoodie.
*ahem*
Here's a monster in chick's clothing:

What? I'm a chicken. See the fluffy yellow all over me? Check out these wings. I'm a chicken! Behold my beak, the better to peck you with.

Little *red* riding chick?
This girl, Josephine, looks like she needs a hug:



And of course, the South Bay guy:

Aw, yeah. South bay, baby. San Jose? Sunnyvale? Santa Clara? Campbell Cupertino Gilroy - holla! Los Altos Milpitas Los Gatos - high five! This monster is for you.

I really love how he looks from the back:


That's it for today. Go hug a hoodie, everyone. Or a monster. :)

Introducing the Blythe Snuggie

As I may or may not have whined about on the blog already, I have been sick with a cold for awhile. Which means lots of laying around in sweatshirts, swaddling oneself in giant unbecoming blankets, and daytime tv.
So I guess it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that after a few days my Blythes started looking like this, too.

The first thing I felt up to making all week was a hoodie:

Which was pretty meh.
After stumbling around all week in a fleece blanket, it occurred to me to make a Blythe Snuggie. Behold!

Enh!

Arms up!

But I'm not just keeping the ultimate in ugly fleecewear to myself, no. They are, of course, available in the shop, should you feel the need.
Up next: Chickenpants Snuggies.

Inspiration Friday - Stuck At Home Sick Edition

I find myself sick for the second Friday in a row. My real life, non-couch life, has dwindled to...something. (I can't finish a sentence lately. That is one of the... this cold.)
But! The good news is that I have been spending a crazy amount of time couch & laptop bound, cruising around the internet with the goal of...there's been shopping.
Here are some of my finds.

Katydiddy's made a cute little form for you to download & write down things you find online. Helpful! I'm still looking for a digital way to do this that would be as efficient...and I'm coming up short.
Check it out!


I am obsessed with photos of Detroit. Detroit! The city that totally fell apart! Why do we ever talk about anything else? What used to be a major US city just fell off the map. Here's a short article with amazing photos of some of the houses that have, well, gone feral: Detroit! Detroit!
(photo above by James Griffioen)

But, perhaps the most amazing and inspiring thing I've come across all week is this:

Liar...
Originally uploaded by LadyJedi78

What is this? Just a photo of a Chickenpants holding a snowball? No, no. It's a whole STORY of Chickenpants in the snow, and it is awesome. A certain super friend & Etsyian put it together, and you can check it all out here.


I managed to catch a showing of The Fantastic Mr. Fox early last week. (Last week? ish?) It was, of course, fantastic. If you are not extremely ill, you really need to go see this movie. It was a kid's movie, sure, but smart and clever enough to pass as a Wes Anderson film. Go. See it.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

We have a winner!

And it's...Commenter #1. Gypsyeye, you are it! Congratulations!
Now, I'm off to go post a similar post over on The Needle.
That's it for me today, this cold has pretty much zapped all my brain power. I've spent over an hour dithering over whether to buy a pair of Blythe pajamas or not. Seriously.

Snowed in!

Hey, what's with the insanely long gap between posts? What, do you have the swine flu or something?*
No, better than that: WE GOT SNOWED IN!
Let me explain to you why this is amazing. 1. We don't get snow very often, let alone snow that sticks. So over a foot of snow is, well, amazing. 2. We live in the mountains, so any amount of snow equals pretty much a disaster, as none of us are equipped for it, and our crazy windy up & down roads on the sides of ravines generally do not have guard rails. 3. I love snow, and it turns me into an indiscriminate photo taking machine:
This is our house. Notice that mountain of snow to the side? That's our driveway.

Thank goodness we have all those Chickenpants hats & scarves around!

Here's the back porch:

Over a foot of snow, people!
Here's the view from my studio:

It's incredible to me just how perfect everything looks in the snow. Our neighborhood looks like it was meant to have snow all over it year round.

Topanga usually loves the snow, but this year she just wasn't having it. Hence the lack of good "pugs in the snow" photos. Poo.
Of course, with the snow comes the lengthy power outages (only 12 hours for us...over 36 hours out for my brother who lives 10 mins away, and it's STILL out last I heard for others who are 20 mins away...), the people who can't get down the driveway and get to work, and, of course, the frozen pipes of doom.
Eh, whatever. I still love the snow.

PS: Only one more day to comment & win a copy of Craft Leftovers Monthly!
You can enter right here:
http://absolutelysmall.blogspot.com/2009/12/craft-leftovers-zine-giveaway.html
And/Or on The Needle:
http://theneedleblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/craft-leftovers-zine-giveaway.html


*Uh, maybe. I have some sort of crazy severe cold/flu going on right now, actually.