Immature - and not out of the closet

While I won't divulge my age, I am apparently an immature adult. I have a thing for the collectible vinyl toys that I think are so cool, as well as cute and adorable Japanese characters. I make(and buy) stuffed creatures, wear Hello Kitty, and wrap packages with Cram Creme tape. But I won't admit it. I went to a great store today that was a mix of awesome vintage clothing and accessories, re-worked clothing, fantastic cards, paper, and gifts and tons of kitschy things. I found myself buying BlueQ totes and a Hello Kitty belt buckle and saying they are for gifts. I bought my son dozens of blind box collectibles at the Kidrobot store in NYC only to commandeer them for myself so he won't 'lose' them.



Walk into my home and it looks like any other nice home (not over the top but nice). It lacks my personality in the main areas. Go into my home office and you will start to see more. In between the craft and decorating books and my long time collection of McCoy pottery (been gathering them before they became popular and knocked off on Ebay) are a basket of Dunnys , a container of souvenir floaty pens and an Amigurumi panda. It's not until you get to my craft room that the stickers, buttons, stuffed owls, collaged boxes, Blythe, and the wide assortment of Japanese cute attack your senses.


The first craft book on the subject of stuffed, crocheted, or felt creatures was Plush-O-Rama by Linda Kopp. The books' subtitle says it all: "Curious Creatures for Immature Adults". That about sums me up. I'm afraid to come out to my peers about my love for cute and indie things. The women I am around on a daily basis just wouldn't understand (or would they?) Their homes barely look like they have children in them, let alone toys for grownups! There are many out there that 'get it'. Individualism, cool, cute, handmade, recycled - whatever. I think it is better than the mall. Maybe I am in the minority but I like what I like. Wish there were craft groups nearby, as there are in Austin, San Francisco, Brooklyn or Seattle. I, and others like me, are grateful for the terrific blogs, zines, and websites that keep us in touch with the things that I hold near and dear but still keep in the closet.

To sum it up best, a quote to me from a friend who works at the local Saks store...
On learning that I purchased a sewing machine, she blurted "you aren't actually going to make your own clothes, are you?"