I completely lifted this article from Jane after I read it here.

I'm hoping no one minds that I lifted, without even a bit of work on my part to write my own blog post. I lifted the article because I know that if I take the time to write my own, it won't get done. And, it needs to be done. Besides, it was already well done!

It's very easy to sit and imagine that this issue doesn't have anything to do with me. I don't sell children's toys. The issue caught my attention just briefly and I thought to myself, "Oh! What a shame, I hope someone does something about that." Then I saw something from the ALA (remember this post?) and I thought just a bit more - and I hoped a little harder that crafters would somehow work some magic and do something about this issue which is so important to them, and a bit important to the ALA. After all, the ALA is a BIG organization and nothing like this will ever really affect libraries, and it really doesn't affect me so..."I wish y'all lotsa luck with this!" But.....

It does affect us.

The article below explains very clearly how it affects us all. I hope you will follow one or more of the steps detailed below. In a previous post I wrote, "Some things are just too stupid..."This is one of those stupid things and it seems we must intervent. I intend to do all that I can; I hope you will too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok. So here is the beef. Never heard of the CPSIA? Panicking over the new regulations? Read on.

I join my voice today with over 260 bloggers today to inform and bring hope about this really upsetting new law in place which ultimately affects the entire nation.

WHAT IS THE CPSIA?

Do you remember last year’s scare over wooden and painted toys from China? I remember debating whether or not to give Ian the set of wooden airplanes I bought him from Pier One. We were all scared.

In response to the overwhelming recall of toys and products containing lead (over 8 million items) the government decided to step in and stop the issue of lead getting to our children. Good, right? Keep children safe!

When congress passed the CPSIA (the Consumer Product Safety Inspection Act) in August 2008, they were intending to protect companies from selling harmful products. All products intended for children under 12 years old must go through thorough and stringent testing. The CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in children’s products, mandates third party testing and certification, and requires manufacturers of all goods for children under the age of 12 to permanently label each item with a date and batch number.

For all the official legal documents and info read here.

How does this affect us?

With good intentions to protect children, the new regulations are so broad and far reaching they are doing more harm than good. Third party testing is so outrageously expensive and extensive, a KEY issue looked into when passing this law, it is threatening to put tens of thousands of companies out of business. For example:

So, you make/sell products for children:

Each particle of your product (clothing, books, toys, educational materials, baby products, etc.) must be tested by a third party. You sell a baby sweater? Each zipper, button, thread, fabric make and particle must be SEPARATELY tested. Even if lead has never been detected in that product. Even if the manufacturer of that product claims the contents are safe. If you make the baby sweater, you must get it tested.
Testing can be anywhere from $100-$500 per test, so add that up, and you have a sweater not even worthy of being sold in Nieman Marcus
For a rather humorous (but healthy dose of reality) of the costs imposed on small business, see over 1,000 ETSY items that have been priced to meet the demands after Feb. 10th here.
(my favorite is the handmade felted play lunch set costing $10,080. To buy, click here.)

What does all that mean?

To the small business owner: Small business owners, home run businesses and crafters will need to have their products comply with these new regulations (regardless of how many products you sell) or serious fines (up to $100,000) can take effect.
To the student and avid reader: The national Library association is concerned because children’s books currently fall under the umbrella of the CPSIA. Read the American Library Association’s letter to congress here. School materials and educational materials will go up in cost due to the stringent testing.
To the Thrift store shopper: Currently their is no formal statement exempting thrifted items from being tested. There is some info that suggests thrifted items are exempt, but it is still not clear
To the consumer: Fewer options will be available. Handmade, European imported, boutiqued, unique children’s products will no longer need to compete against the mass produced Matel and Fisher price products because they will no longer be legal. Read the Handmade Toy Alliance’s statement here.

To the economy in general: With families losing incomes due to these regulations, consumers paying higher prices for children’s products and businesses having to borrow more money to stay afloat, February 10th has been labeled as “National Bankruptsy day”
Statement from the Handmade Toy Alliance: If this law had been applied to the food industry, every farmers market in the country would be forced to close while Kraft and Dole prospered.

What can we do about it?

The law is already in place. The CPSC is a rather small organization is struggling to create the infrastructure to comply with such a massive change in commerce. Because of that, formal statements with specifications of any products that may or may not be exempt have not been made. At this point, companies are still forced to comply. According to this forum, Congress has denied a second hearing, and has not shown any signs of changing the law.

However, YOUR voice NEEDS to be heard in the mean time. This issue has already made it to the front page of Change.org (Obama’s site on change) but still, nothing has happened yet to suggest change. If something doesn’t happen soon, HUGE changes for the worse have already been set into play.

A plan for action:

Don’t panic. Yes, deadlines are looming, but keep up hope! A lot of negativism has spread in the handmade/small business community, but too much passion will only impede our voice from being heard. Keep working towards change.
Contact the Committee on Energy and Commerce. See the On-line Action kit with addresses here.
Contact your local Representatives
Contact your Senator.

Contact the President
Contact the CPSC (in charge of implementing the law)
Keep up on official updates from the CPSC here
Participate in CPSC Public commenting: Until January 30th, 2009 the CPSC is taking public comments on Section 102 ofthe CPSIA. Email them here: Sec102ComponentPartsTesting@cpsc.gov
SIgn these petitions: http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/reform-cpsia-hr4040.html
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/RepealCPSIA/
USE THE ACTION KIT made by ETSY administration with SAMPLE letters to be used for all the above contacts.
Helpful links and references:

1. The Handmade Toy Alliance http://www.handmadetoyalliance.org/
The most comprehensive source for information and action is the website of the
Handmade Toy Alliance.
- Sign up for their newsletter:
- Join their Google Group
2. Reform CPSIA
http://reformcpsia.org/
An Organization of Retailers & Consumers Focused on Reforming the CPSIA

3. ETSY ACTION KIT

http://www.etsy.com/storque/media/bunker/2009/01/CPSIA-Etsy-Resources.pdf

A comprehensive list of info, sample letters to use, action plans, links and official statements


2. Fashion Incubator
http://www.fashion-incubator.com/blog/
Kathleen Fasanella has been doing a wonderful job of explaining the CPSIA in
straightforward and clear ways. Highly recommended.


3. CPSIA Central
http://cpsia-central.ning.com/


4. Buy Handmade

http://blog.buyhandmade.org/

The handmade consortium is keeping this blog up to date with CPSIA news and
press.


5. National Bankruptcy Day
http://nationalbankruptcyday.com/


6. Smart Mama Blog
http://www.thesmartmama.com/bg/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

RECENT ARTICLES ON THE CPSIA:


1. Forbes:
Scrap The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act
Part I:
Part II:

2. Bloomberg:
Mattel, Wal-Mart Test Toys as Small Firms Struggle

3. Business Week:
Misinformation and the CPSIA

3. CNN:
New Law could wipe out handcrafted toy makers


Right now, American voices need to be heard. PLEASE write you reps, make calls, blog, contact your local media! I cringe to think that the handmade Christmas items I bought this year (that my children are currently playing with as I write this post) will no longer be available for purchase in the very near future.

So there is the BEEF! Apologies for this VERY long post! But being part of the handmade and small business community, I passionate about getting these regulations altered to allow business to thrive as usual! Raise your voice and make a change!

Sweet Mail

My day started off with a sweet surprise in the mail, all the way from the Netherlands. Die Niederlande; if I remember a little from German class. This felt pouch was sent to me by Naomi. The pouch looks beautiful and it feels so strong - like it will surely hold up to the torture of my projects as I cart them back and forth to who knows where. Naomi wrapped everything, I hated that I needed to unwrap it all to show you the contents of my pouch. I wanted to just stare at the little packages. She included some interesting looking tea bags (I can't wait to try those!), and some lovely little ribbons and flowers that will be just perfect on a pincushion I'm working. I hope you drop by Naomi's shop; she has some beautiful items. This was a very thoughtful package. Thank you Naomi.

My Saturday is off to an interesting start. Fran is coming with a surprise, and Saoirse already brought me a generous gift of a crafting lamp. I don't like it that my eyes require special light and sometimes a magnifier, but tis true and I'm eager to try it out as I afix these little ribbons to the project I'm going to work on today. I hope your Saturday is productive and filled with warm surprises and treats.

OOOPS!! I forgot the most important part. Naomi included a little felt ball - I'll use it as a fob on my pouch, or maybe my keyring, or ummm maybe I can figure out how to get it on my cell phone.

I had a plan

I was sure my plan was foolproof. I was confident that I had a funny, whimsical little post. This was a good thing you know. It was a good thing, because everyone knows that *I* am NOT funny. I have not one funny cell in my body. So, now that my plan has fallen astray and we are all safe in our knowing that Lee is NOT funny; I'll tell you my failed plan. The plan was to post this:

The first line of my oh so funny, cute, even sweet post should have gone like this:

I showed this photo to all of my daughters (and remember! I have SIX!!) and each of them said, in their own special way of course, something like this, "Who are all those people with Uncle Rusty?" Then I was going to tell you that I showed this photo also to my OTHER Baby Brother and he said, "Rusty do a call for those folks?" Other Baby Brother was going to wonder also when Rusty had added another trophy to his wall, and when he was going to change the color of the living room. Eventually, when I came to it, Baby Brother's wife would have commented about the curtains and how they were not EXACTLY like hers and wonder if I edited the post to encourage a slight change in her decor.

I was so sure of my plan, so convinced! The post was to end with the line explaining that the good looking fellow on the end is not, after all, Rusty, my brother. I would have then said, "THIS is my brother!"



My brother is the fine looking fellow at the top of all the other "red-headed step-children" in my family. The plan failed first because I could not find the photo of my brother in his Carhart jacket and winter, wooly cap. Then, I was going to explain how my family lives not far from this family. I was going to go on, profoundly about the liklihood of me reading (religiously!), out of the bazillions of blogs on the web, the one blog that might just post a photo of someone who looks exactly like my brother.

I had a fine post written in my mind full of kismet and meaning and how closely we are all bound. Then, I followed through in reality and showed this photo to the first of my daughters (remember, I have six!). I advised her to speak the first words that came to her mind. I was so sure she'd say, "Who are all those people with Uncle Rusty?" Instead, she looked at me like I was nuts and said, "And?" I responded, "Don't you see your Uncle Rusty?" She said, "Mom, that's not Rusty! You are nuts!" Ahem. Then she said, "Mom, it's just the jacket, every man in the Midwest has a Carhart jacket."

So much for my plan to reveal my sense of humor and play. I spared the other five daughters and my other baby brother and decided to remain in their minds forever as NOT funny.

Hope you're having a playful week, soone to be followed by a restful, fulfilling weekend. ~Lee

Butterflies are free to fly......

I wasn't wild about this project, know what I mean, Vern? But of course, now that it's done, I'm planning a sequel. I'm not sure exactly why I do that - even if I didn't enjoy something the first time around, I need to go again. What? I need to be absolutely certain I didn't like it? I thought the project was a bit tedious, and took more time than I wanted it to take. For all the hours I put into it - I thought I should have a dress when it was all finished. Even so, it looks pretty, it will be functional and so I think I'll do a few more for myself; maybe for my Aunt. Would you like one? That was a rhetorical question but if you would, you can find the pattern and directions in Pretty Little Potholders.

It's an amazing week. I find myself having a little bit of happy anticipation, eagerness, usually absent, to look out into the world. Maybe I'll like what I see. I'm working on another project which I am really liking - and which has given me sort of an epiphany which I'll share tomorrow. I hope you're liking your world too, look inside and out - our worlds aren't so far a apart as we might think.
Cheers! ~LeeA

Maybe I am a knitter

I almost didn't post photos of these finished projects. I just do not have a knack for taking photos. Or, maybe it's the camera. Or, the Seattle clouds. Even so, I had such fun with these little pouches that I wanted to crow some. They are by no means, perfect, or even close. But! I learned so much in the process. I learned a bit about different kinds of cotton, I learned about different kinds of needles. I switched, for the blue/green pouch, from the bamboo needles that everyone else seems to love, to the needles my grandmother used. Remember aluminum needles that made that wonderful clicking sound while grandma sped through afghan after afghan? The yarn slides, the clicking gave me a hypnotic rhythm and I loved every minute. I'm still working on smiling, or at least not frowning when I knit. It turned into a lovely experience - close to meditating for me. And in the end, I have a protective pouch for my Zune (which I love!)Frannie had given me speakers for a Christmas gift and now, I carry my Zune more faithfully back and forth to work because I've left the new speakers on my desk. My day is so much more ALIVE with a bit of soft music at my desk.

I also turned these out this morning
More icky photographs. They really do look nicer when seen in my hands. I love the purple and orange together in the first pouch. And, I was also pleased that I put these together with nothing much more than scrap fabric. After the pouch was complete I discovered that one of the fabrics had a bit of a hole and likely should have remained scrap - I thought about scrapping it (ha!) and starting again but instead, I think I'll do a bit of stitchery - I hope it turns out in my hands as it is in my head. I've still not got the zipper quite right, but it suffices for a nice little pouch. I use these little pouches for projects and bus fare; my daughters are all happy with their little pouches and they are finding all sorts of surprising uses for them. I really do recommend this for those of you, like me, who are remembering again to sew and knit.

I so often visit the blogs of real artists, women who have perfected their craft. And while I am inspired, I am also often a bit intimidated. I love so much to create, especially to create little gifts, and yet, my skill is not what it should be for a woman my age. These small projects give me a space to remember, a short project resulting in a finished project and not something larger and discouraging which becomes just another "thing" in my closet for the daughters to sort out someday and maybe finish.

That said, I spent the rest of the day working on a potholder which has so many different little bits and pieces that I feel like I should have a completed dress or quilt at the end. Half a day and I'm still not finished; perhaps it will be complete tomorrow. Yet, even that, as frustrating as it is for what should be a simple project, has helped me to remember forgotten things. And, it will be useful, though perhaps less than perfect, when it is finished.

Saoirse is in Indianapolis this weekend. A generous friend provided airfare so that she could visit with her sisters. I've had a lot of wonderful help with the boys in her absence and we've had a relaxing day weekend thus far. I spent a day mixed with crafting and grandma-ing which culminated in a walk in the mysterious darktime and hot chocolate. Tomorrow I'll tell you about a wealth of good things and I hope you have just as many or more wonderful gifts in your life too. ~Lee

CPSIA

I suppose that I should wait and see what others are writing before I jump headlong into this post. While I wait, I'm contemplating alternative titles for this post. Some of the possibilities are:

You're Kidding, Right?
Have you lost your mind?
Can I be reading this right?
We're not in Kansas anymore
Where have all the flowers gone?
Where is that ancient email that made it's way around about all the things I survived as a child in the 50s and 60s?
How come I'm not in charge here?
Suck it up Soldier! (courtesy of my daughter)
And I'm back to, "You're kidding, right?"

I keep reading it over, and in the morning, forthwith, I shall surely find that this was posted as sarcasm. Some things are just too dumb to comment. I'd read all about this legislation on half a dozen crafting blogs; it's the last thing I expected to see come up on a library blog site. I'm dumbfounded! I expected crafters might just have to go around and be goofy and add a disclaimer to their products stating that the item is not intended as a toy - but can you imagine, a sign, right above the Dr. Seuss books, "These items are not intended for use by children."


“The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s interpretation of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which lowers the permissible level of lead in children’s products and imposes certification requirements, may require libraries to limit access to their children’s collections or have them tested for lead content. The new law becomes effective February 10.” (http://www.librarystuff.net/2009/01/15/ala-seeks-exemption-for-childrens-books-from-anti-lead-law/)

Goals for 2009

I've been thinking about this A LOT. For several days now an old hymn has been ringing through my mind, the words go something like this:

I am resolved no longer to linger,
Charmed by the world’s delight,
Things that are higher, things that are nobler,
These have allured my sight.

Only, I always thought it was "sweeter" and "purer" (How do you spell pure - er?) It's one of the things I like about my life - those old hymns. I'm so grateful to my mother for giving me that music, for making sure that it would live inside my body when everything else was forgotten. Thank you Mama. Those old songs always seem to capture my thoughts at the most fortuitious moments.

Like New Years.

Like when everyone is supposed to be making resolutions.

I am resolved....hmmmm. The persistant clanging of these words in the otherwise often empty spaces of own conversations with myself left me wondering exactly what I am resolved to do, or what would I wish I were resolved to do? In the midst of all this wondering about my own be-ing resolved I realized that I had departed from the usual clang myself over the head and force myself to write down some resolution that I knew was good for me but that I probably did not want to work on, or at least that I knew I would not work on. You know, "In 2008 I will quite smoking, I will lose 20 lbs (only twenty now!) and exercise 3 times a week." Yes. Those sound like good New Year's Resolutions. Except that they never happened - no, except that I never did them. I was never resolved.

Being resolved feels different than making a resolutions. Over days, I have begun to really feel resolved and resolutions are taking shape. My life is more than half over, it's about time I got resolved don't you think? So, what do I want my life to look like? How do I want my life to feel? How do I want to be? What do I want to invite into my life so that I am resolved?

Along those lines, I began to create a picture of a fulfilling, comfortable, resolved life. My New Year's Resolutions then became things that I WANT to do and what I want to have in my life. What are the things that I love? How do I BE when I'm being authentically me?

I'm still not done, but this is how it's looking so far:

I am a mother - I want to be more connected to my children and grandchildren.
I am a creator - I love creating - I will do that more on a consistent, daily basis rather than the "night before finals" approach that I have recently employed.
I want to be alive - I will begin taking care of my body so that this second half of my life can be filled with passion and creativity. This means that I will eat more alive food and begin avoiding not so alive food. I will get consistent rest, and keep consistent hours so that I can enjoy the rythym of life around me.
I am a reader - I want to read more.
I am a spinner - I want to really spin, if not daily, at least weekly.
I ama musician - I want more music in my life.
I require people - I want to seek out community
I require solitude - I need to balance both sides of me - nuture me in alone time so that community time is fruitful.

I'm sure there's some book out there which says this isn't how it's done. I'm sure that some New Age "create your own reality" will say that I need to have more specific pictures and images. Some academian might say that I need to have a plan for how to measure my succes.

But you know - I think my heart will know. I'm working on building a life that's authentic, that's me, I want a life that I WANT.

I think the picture will become clearer. I can feel it. I'm beginning to have a visceral awareness of being resolved. And, I'm likin it so far.

Potholders (finally)

These were a fun little project. I have a few more cut and ready to sew together. I made them for Saoirse' co-worker. Her new boss and her daughter were so generous with Saoirse at Christmas that I wanted to do something in appreciation. While working on these, I got inspired by a book called, Pretty Little Potholders and I can't wait to jump into some of those projects.

It's a lazy Saturday around here. Why is it that when we say, "lazy" we really mean that there's laundry going, something working in the kitchen, piles of this and that to pick up and chores, ever chores in progress. I love those days though. I love hanging out in my home and puttering. And, I love the feeling at the end of the day that everything is right where it should be - even if everything only means the "stuff" in my household.

I hope you're having a lazy Saturday too. ~Lee

Pincushions, Pouches and almost (still)potholders

I've had a lot of fun making these little gifts. Well, those in close company might say that I was definitely NOT having fun during the "conquer the zipper" phase - and I'm betting those in close company weren't having much fun either. But now that the zipper is old hat (haha!) these little pouches are a cinch; great fun. The pincushions are fun too.

I realized, while I was imagining a post and imagining something a bit more creative and meaningful than show and tell, that I really, REALLY like making gifts. I wonder why? I'm not sure I'm any more creative than the average Sue and I'm surely not as skilled as many. Yet I persist, sometimes I think, to the dismay of those in close company if you know what I mean. There are periods of frustration as I climb the learning curve, and sometimes (sometimes?!?!?!) my end product doesn't meet my standard of perfection. But it's still fun. And, I think I know one reason why I love it so much.

Remember these?


The pouch on the far right, the mostly black and green is for Saoirse. Doesn't it remind you of 3rd grade when you used up your year's worth of crayons, coloring at random in the brightest colors you could find, then covering it all in black crayon and scratching off designs? It makes me think of that. The designs are musical notes and scales in this case and that's why the fabric just screamed, "Saoirse!" If there's someone who loves music more than Saoirse, I don't know who it is. Then there's batman right next to that. Anyone who knows could guess (oh man I'm just full of 'em today) that's for Fran. She has batman sneakers too. Now those chili peppers. All my daughters will know for whom that one was made. Just after my divorce, Tessa wrote a story for a school assignment. She wrote about her family, she wrote about the hard time of divorce but how we were strong, just like the red peppers that had grown outside my kitchen window through a winter of deep snow. So, I think I've given her red pepper jewelry and potholders and who knows what else because that story is so etched in my heart. Why not a pouch? Did you guess that the pouch of sewing notions is for me? Once in awhile I need to think of me, with every stitch going a little deeper.

Then there are the pouches above. Satori is my soccer player - man was it great fun to watch her play. She was, and is, amazing! Hannah has always been our cat queen. For the longest time during her childhood I think every present that was given to her either had cats somehow attached, or it was a cat! That pouch with the skulls and crossbones is for Maggie. All grown up and married now MamaMaggie. Her Goth period can be remembered now with a wry smile and a sigh of gratitude. One of my library assistants was a Maggie herself, but I suspect a happier and more cheery Goth girl. So, the pretty Goth pincushion is for her. Then there's my other library assistant. I'm not sure she sews, but I imagine that even to complete the fashion merchandising program, she is going to have to sew SOMETHING at some point; maybe the pincushion will inspire her. Almost every day at work I find her reading the business journals, and musing about the economic forecast. So, the cash pincushion seemed just right.

I love it when I can create a little something that is just for you. When each stitch, or each rip out or frogging, brings you close to my thoughts and fills up my heart. Somehow it feels to me like holding hands, like walking down the street arm in arm and sometimes, like a long, lingering hug and words that are not spoken.

I hope your New Years is off to a great start and holds the right balance of memory and looking forward and always, always, points you toward the light.