thrift tags, anyone?

this is probably a long shot, but i'll ask these questions anyway:
-are you a big time thrifter?
-do any of your local thrift haunts have cool paper tags like those seen above?
-better yet, do you live in SF/the bay area and go to thrift town fairly often?
the reason i'm asking is...
i'm thinking of doing a mural sized art piece made from tags collected from thrift stores. thrift town, the thrift store chain i used to visit bi-weekly when i lived in SF had great colorful, graphic price tags, and after a while, i started collecting the tags with the idea of doing something with them.
this week, my daughter wanted to play with them, so they were in my sight again, and it struck me that they would look really cool if somehow collaged. i happened to be sitting in front of my sewing machine...and voila, i started sewing them together, so they are basically patchworked/pieced to one another.
sadly, though, i only have a small amount of them, used up the last of them today.
would you care to collect any tags from your local thrifts that look particularly cool? or any at all that you find, and send them my way?
it could be really cool to have tags from different places, all over the country, or world, even.
i'm trying to think of how i could repay you...maybe if you have a lot to send me i could reimburse your postage? sell you my soul? bake you some cookies? or send you a grabbag of cool crafty things i have laying around? must think about that! hee. need to think of something appropriate... :P
it would also be really cool if you could spread the word, if you're so inclined: "crazy woman needs thrift store tags for art project"...

email me if you think you could help contribute! thanks. :)

this and that

how did almost another month slip by without me posting anything?
whoopsie.
oh well!
i've been busy...amongst other things, i have mostly rabidly working on what you see above:
-a granny square blanket using scraps from my yarn stash (will probably go on our bed, we shall see), edged with white...
-a garter patch throw blanket, also using yarn from my stash (i have a LOT of scraps, ok? it's pretty extreme!)...
-and seen in the center, a liberated "log cabin" (very loosely defined!) quilt, a la gwen marston, using all solids.
the patchwork work mostly gets done during the day (to take advantage of the daylight coming into my studio), and the knitting and crocheting fills many of my nights. i may start doing more patchwork stuff at night, as i now have a wonderful set of powerful tracklights in the studio, thanks to a local electrician.

***

i've been checking into the interwebs daily, but mostly, i'm just continuing to take a rest and i'm going through a period where i am mostly observing, rather than doing much contributing. i want to come back, but at the same time, i feel like i still need and want this time to step back, to just be in the background for a while, whilst i figure everything out.

a space to be creative

after what seems like ages (really, it's only been about a year!), i finally have a creative space to call my very own.

our new place in greenwich is three glorious but efficient stories, and the third floor, which sits above the master bedroom, is my sewing/art studio. or, atelier. or workspace. or office. whatever it wants to be called or should be called...it's all mine. it ain't perfect, but it's falling into place nicely. kinks shall be worked out over time, me hopes.
the room has INCREDIBLE natural light, due to two giant skylights. during the day it's just a complete dream to dawdle around in there. at night, not so much. we're going to hire an electrician to come and wire the room for an overhead light so i can work at night, after p.'s shuffled off to dreamland. i also hope to get a couch or cushy chair up there for lounging, eventually. there's a tv on top of the card catalog that's connected to the downstairs TIVO...when i feel like doing handwork or whatnot i can perhaps retire there. pete could also sit there computing in the evenings and keep me company. here's hoping that seating comes into our lives sooner rather than later. i'm chomping at the bit to really spend quality time there.
admittedly, i do manage to get up there at least once a day, even if it is accompanied by my little friend. she likes to dig through the lower drawers of the card catalog, seen at left, emptying each, and scattering the contents across the carpet with glee. she also uses the yellow trashcan as a drum with the spirit moves her, and colors on a special pad i put up there for her personal use. she literally begs to go up there, hanging off the lower gate like a monkey; it has fast become a daily routine. while she goes nuts exploring and mess-making, i ponder what i want and need to get making, sort through fabric or patterns, or press needy bits of fabric and/or pieces freshly washed clothing. i even managed to do a tiny bit of sewing in her presence this week, while she quietly played. so nice.
i'm hoping that sometime soon, maybe in the next few years, i can set her up with some crafts or toys in a corner up there and get down to some honest to goodness sewing. maybe it's a laughable thought, but hey, a mom can dream, right?