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Picking a Favorite

  • March 2, 2013

Most of my adult life I’ve been told not to pick favorites. Don’t settle into a college major too early, don’t fall in love with a house when looking for one since you might not get it, don’t play favorites with job opportunities as they are tough to come by, and of course don’t play favorites with your kids (don’t worry, that one I agree with!). Basically, in this day and age, you get what you get and you don’t get upset.

Not this time. No way, no how. Normally I play be the rules and I love all colors equally and I can see the merit in all colorways. I am like that with art after all, I love it all. Then along came a client that inspired me in such a way that I have been able to create two amazing colorways for her. Both based on her daughters and both beautiful in their own right. But this one, oh this one.

It’s simply called Mer. Because honestly nothing I could name it would ever do it justice. Nothing I can say will ever describe the depth of richness, the vibrancy of the shades, the perfect way the colors interact. I would just let the pictures say it for me, but unfortunately even they are failing me this time.

Meet my new favorite.

Mer

Mer

Behind The Bu—Putting It All Together

  • February 6, 2013

Third in my Behind The Bu series, everything comes together in this one, literally. It’s is all about the sewing, actually taking the gorgeous fabric and turning it into something functional.

Tools of the trade that I can't live without.

I’ve been sewing since I was in middle school (I refuse to say exactly how many years ago that was, so don’t ask!). I learned how to make clothes and bags, and once I did that, I wasn’t very interested. I’ve always thought it cool, but never had the drive to learn more about it. I picked it back up when I moved out on my own and found it was way too expensive to buy the kind of drapes and home furnishings I wanted. So, I made them.

My mom taught me everything I know about sewing. Well, to be honest there was a home-ec teacher in there somewhere too, but since I can’t remember her name, and can barely remember the class, I say that doesn’t count. My mom has been sewing forever, my whole life (again, not saying exactly how long), and she got started with her mother, and so on. It’s a cool thing to look back and have all that heritage of seamstresses in the family. I would have loved to have sewn with them all. My mom can sew anything, but really loves to sew clothing and home decor. I hate to sew clothing, but can sew a mean drape, and of course all kinds of bamboo.

Tools of the trade

I think that’s one of the reasons my designs are no-frill, I’m a no-nonsense person. My products are all born out of need. My daughter needed a blanket, my son needed a lovey, my son needed diapers, etc., etc. All the designs fit those particular needs from that time in our lives. They were designed to work, and work hard. The designs could be purely functional, after all, since the fabric is exceptional.

That’s probably where my love of dyeing came to be. I didn’t want blankets and towels and diapers that were complicated. I wanted a simple design to showcase the beauty of the color, and to highlight the luxury of the fabric.

Plus, I’m a tactile gal. I like the feel of things, and there is no doubt that nothing feels better than a Bu.

 

Behind the Bu—Bring on the Color

  • January 30, 2013

Last week I started this series, Behind the Bu. It’s an all access backstage pass to how I do what I do. This week it’s all about the dye. Which happens to be my favorite part, cause who doesn’t love color? Color is my world, it’s my passion, and sharing color is what I do.

Mixing the dye and readying the dye bath.

I look, and find, inspiration everywhere. I’ve gotten color combination, or colorway, ideas from taking a walk in the woods by the house, in my kids imagination, from photos of exotic creatures, and from you, my customers. It’s the best part of my job, working with someone to help their vision come to life.

Dyeing is the easy part. It’s a matter of using the right kind of dye, procion in my case; find a way to apply it that appeals to you; make sure to fix the dye so it bonds to the fabric; and voila!, your very own hand dyed gorgeousness. For me though, the interest lies in the way the colors react to each other. Discovering how one shade of tangerine laid over a certain shade of plum will react. And how it fascinates me when the same colors dance differently together when applied to the fabric in a new way. The dye is alive for me, each color has it’s own personality and behavior.

Dyeing is the best part of my job, bringing color to a blank canvas.

Behind the Bu—Where it All Begins

  • January 20, 2013

In my last post in 2012, which has been way too long ago, I talked about my excitement in working with a great local photographer and friend, Danielle of dKol Photography. She took some time and did a photo expo from start to finish of the Tickety Bu product creation. Many of you have asked to see how I do what I do, how the magic comes alive and what goes into the loveliness that is the Bu, and this is your chance. This is the first in a series of posts about the Bu and how it’s born.

Let’s start where any good story should, at the beginning. And the beginning of every good Bu is, of course, the fabric.

Bamboo luxury comes from a blend of bamboo and organic cotton, milled in a closed loop, which means no chemicals are released into the environment. All the fabric I use is Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified, which means that it is certified to not contain any harmful substances and it is also certified organic, both the bamboo farm and the fabric itself.

Tickety Bu was founded during a time when I was undergoing significant changes with my family. As a relatively new mom, I rebelled against the conventions of my time. I refused the standards that were popular and was drawn to a more natural way of life. I rid my home of any chemical I could, changed to a whole food based diet, and began to live a more self-sustaining life.

Tickety Bu has been a part of that. From using a fabric that blends high performance with eco-friendly methods, to shipping in re-useable and biodegradable packaging, everything about this brand is as responsible as I can make it.

But back to the fabric. For those who don’t know, bamboo blends are incredibly soft, 4-5 times more absorbent than cotton and thermodynamic, so they breathe, creating warmth in winter and coolness in hot weather. Bamboo is a renewable crop, one that requires little water and no herbicides or pesticides. Bamboo is just a great choice all around, and the best choice for the Bu.

I normally stock a variety of bamboo fabrics for all the Bu products. Bamboo velour, interlock, terry and french terry.

So many fabrics, so much Bu!

Bamboo fabric must be washed and prepped before dyeing.

Bamboo on the roll…. I go through a lot of rolls.

Bu Babies

  • August 29, 2012

I’ve been talking about it for awhile, so I’m clearly excited about it. I have a good friend who happens to be a great photographer. (I know, right? I’m so lucky!) I have been talking to her for over a year about my desire to bring more of a visual voice to the Bu. We’ve brainstormed ideas, we’ve talked about the brand, it’s voice and it’s personality. Finally, I got my act together and we made this happen.

I provided the products, but the vision was all dKol. She knew the brand well as she’s seen it come to life over the years and happens to have plenty of Bu herself, but she gave it a much bigger voice than even I had hoped for. The result was amazing, I just couldn’t be happier.

I have to also say a bit out the Bu Babies. A mix of the cutest kids with such big personalities. I love the way each and every one of them reacted to the Bu they had, to all of us around them and to the camera. Such great kids and families, I’m so happy to have shared this with them.

This whole process has been amazing, and seeing all the kids and their Bu makes me think we should do a little photo contest. Stay tuned for more info about that next week some time.

And without further ado and chit chat… the shots! There are a lot of them, but I just had to share.

Look to the stars


Splish Splash


Just one more lap


The perfect tailgate party


Look at me, I’m standing!


Don’t mess with my Bu


A dreamy day


Whispers


Getting so strong


Quiet comfort


Cozy


Bath time fun

A Few Fun Customs and a Glimpse of Me

  • August 17, 2012

I’m getting back into the swing of things after taking the Spring off. If you recall I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease at the beginning of the year. It’s been a rough first half of 2012, but I’m hoping the second half will be stupendous. After all, our family is going through a lot of changes–our oldest son starts school, our daughter is going back to school after being homeschooled for two years and our youngest son is starting pre-school. It will be a vastly different world around here, but I’m excited for us all!

The past few weeks have seen me focus on customs and preparing for the photo shoot with dKol Photography. I thought I’d share a bit of that work and share a photo of me from the shoot. As you all know, I rarely share photos of myself, so don’t be surprised if this is the last one for awhile. Plus, the Bu babies are so cute, you’ll want to see them, not me, anyway. And my next post will be all Bu babies!

Bitty Bu collection in the dKol colorway.

A Cuddle Throw in the Katie colorway.

A Cuddle Blanket in Bird Song.

The woman behind the Bu.

dKol Photography tells the story of Bu

  • August 3, 2012

I love a good photo. I always have been drawn to photography of all kinds, but especially photo journalism. It all started when I was little and looking through National Geographic Magazine. There is nothing more powerful than a photo that allows you to glimpse the magic of a moment in time, almost like you are looking in on something that is secret. I guess you can argue that every photo does that, but I wouldn’t agree. There is an art to taking a photo that puts the viewer there, that lets the viewer participate in the moment, whether they want to or not.

There is a local photographer who’s work celebrates moments and makes them larger than life. Danielle of dKol Photography is that photographer. I love her work, her quirky style and her fun personality.

I’m so excited that she’s working with me to give you all a better glimpse into the world of Tickety Bu—first with lifestyle product shots, and later some behind the scenes shots of my studio and dyeing. There might even be some shots of me in there. Gasp!

In the meantime check out a bit of her work, and more at her site, dKol Photography

We’re Heading South!

  • June 27, 2012

We’re gone, on the road again. It’s time for our annual trek to Tennessee to visit family. We’ll be back on July 16th with lots of pictures and a renewed spirit and energy. Anything purchased from June 28th – July 15th, will ship on the 16th upon our return. Thanks so much, have a great 4th of July all!

New Inspirations

  • February 22, 2012

In 2011 I developed a new colorway every week. It was a lot of work, but so rewarding pushing my creativity and looking for new inspiration everywhere. I have not been creating new colorways at quite the same pace as last year, after all I’ve slowed down a bit with Tickety Bu. But I do have some fun new colorways to reveal, all with a story to tell of their own.

Sugar and spice and oh so nice. A colorway inspired by a great client.

A recent custom inspired this colorway. The name Burning Sky came after the colorway was done, as it just spoke to me, the colors of a sunset burning down in a clear blue sky.

Pinkie Square Promise is a girl’s club color in all it’s hot pink glory. So get your pinkies out and make a promise to a girl you love!

I was a huge Sid and Marty Krofft fan when little. I especially adored Sigmund & the Sea Monsters. It was my favorite show. Now that I’m introducing my own kids to classics like this, I can’t help but be inspired to create something fun. Sea Monster is dark blue with bold swaths of orange and gold and lots of green throughout as a result.

Inspired by the fun and vibrant nursery this little one calls home.

Color Love

  • January 30, 2012

As you all know, I’m a bit of a sucker for color. I love all colors, in most all combinations and I’m especially partial to slightly desaturated color. I feel it provides more mood and emotion.

Lately I’ve been a bit under the weather and since I’ve been in bed resting a lot, I’ve been spending a lot of time on Pinterest. After all, what are you going to do with your time in bed other than pin all the wonderful things you find there???

I came across a great craft pin by my friend Angela of Wild Coconut Wear, which was a repin of a repin of a fantastic idea by sydddthekiddd on tumblr. (did you get all that?) The best ideas are simple, easy to execute and beautiful.

Since I’m normally a bit of a dud when it comes to holiday decorating outside of my favorites, Halloween and Christmas, I vowed to the kids that we’d do something fun and home made each and every holiday this year. We just finished two of the kid’s birthday’s so now it’s on to Valentine’s Day. This craft was the perfect thing. The only changes we made were to glue the hearts back to back to the string since we were going to be hanging ours in various doorways in the house and they’d be seen from both sides.

The best thing about this idea is that it’s full of gorgeous color. It makes my heart giddy I tell ya. Although I imagine the paint department at Home Depot was none too pleased when they saw me raiding the paint chip section, pulling out one of each and every paint chip. But how could I resist all that glorious color? I had to have them all, since other ideas for paint chip crafts abound and there are many, many more holidays ahead of us this year.