Why Handmade?

I'm going to talk about something that does the equivalent to giving me thought hives. It's something that's gotten into my head and bothers me on a minor level for a pretty significant amount of time. Sort of like the thought equivalent of me petting a dog. I touch a dog, and then for the rest of the day, whatever part of my body came into contact with that cute, fluffy doggy fur will itch. Some ideas are like that for me, and this is one of them.

Not too long ago, Etsy made some "clarifications" to their handmade policy. Etsy is often thought of as *the* place for handmade things, and for the most part it does an okay job at that. The rules a few years ago were that everything needed to be handmade by the person selling, and if they had help by family or friends, this had to be disclosed, and those people listed in the shop info. Then this changed to handmade by the person selling or someone in their immediate employ-- not a factory, but a handful of employees. This has changed even more, to now being the person owning the shop must design the things, but they can outsource to a factory if they wish (and as long as they disclose that in their shop info somewhere).

I can kind of understand this. For all of those people custom designing wedding invitations, T-shirts, etc. and having them printed somewhere else, then selling them as an original design-- that makes sense. What customers are paying for in those instances is the work that went into the design, not a hand sewn shirt or handmade paper. Sort of like the coloring books that Melanie and I made. She did all of the illustrations herself, I did all of the text, but neither of us were capable of printing and binding them on our own, so we got someone else to do that bit. Not knowing if that actually counted as "handmade" by Etsy standards, I never listed them on Etsy before, but such things also sell better in person, so I bring them to fall craft fairs with me.

I'm completely okay with all of that. What bothers me, and what's giving me the brain hives is that this is the same rule across the board. I'm sure it would be a nightmare for the Etsy staff to try to separate out how this rule would apply to the different categories (and I have no clue how the new rule applies to vintage things at all). So it's a blanket rule for everyone. This, I'm not fond of.



When I started making sock monkeys, I didn't intend to start selling them, I just needed more monkeys to do a photo challenge. When people started asking to buy them, I started selling them, and to me, part of what makes them special is that they really are handmade. I mean handmade in every sense of the word-- there aren't a dozen (usually underpaid) people sitting in a warehouse somewhere stitching together Monkeyville Sock Monkeys. There's me.

This is George, the very first sock monkey I ever made.

I really do make each monkey by hand. I sew the bodies on a regular sewing machine (I got it at Target, it's not anything special, but it has a stretchy fabric setting), I stuff each monkey, and I assemble them. The limbs, ear, tail, mouth, and all of the facial details are hand stitched, the felt for the hearts and other tummy adornments is cut by hand (freehand too most of the time) and that's attached by hand too. On very rare occasions, I have a bit of help stuffing them, because when things get busy, I'm often not physically capable of stuffing all of the monkeys. I have arthritis, so I occasionally have friends and family help me with that. I also always ask for help with names, because I've made so many monkeys now, that I just can't think of anymore, and everyone I know people with really good ideas.

I could completely outsource monkey manufacture. Just write up some schematics and send them off to some factory somewhere and say "make these guys, and make them all look like this" and I could sell them on Etsy if I wanted. It wasn't a strict adherence to Etsy's rules or some kind of loyalty to that particular site that has stopped me from outsourcing the monkeys.What stopped me, was that to outsource the monkeys would defeat the whole purpose of making them.

This is where the fact that I never set out to sell the sock monkeys is a factor. I started out making them because I needed something that would distract me from everything else in my life being broken. I gave away a bunch of monkeys, but I needed something else to do with them, so I started selling them. When things got hard again, the monkeys saved the day again, providing much needed income when I was unemployed, and a much needed distraction from the constant "OMG! I MUST JOB!"

An old photo of in progress monkeys. The technique is different, but the process is the same.

If someone else was making the monkeys, none of those things would have been there. I'd like to think the fact that each one is unique and made by me makes a difference in the monkeys too-- at the very least, they don't get ruptured stitches that require intensive surgery the same way. My concerns aren't producing as many sock monkeys as cheaply as possible to maximize profit, I make the monkeys because I like to. I love sock monkeys, and as I've said before, they're my way of making the world a bit better. Paying other people to make them just doesn't do the same thing.

The current Monkeyville Fall/Winter Flock, waiting for adoption!

Each one of those little guys takes me at least a couple hours to make. The more complicated the details (more than one heart, the skeletons) mean more time. Am I ever going to make hundreds of these guys a week? Not likely, but I make as many of them as I can, because I like to make things, and I like making things that make people happy even more.

Spreading the Sock Monkey Love

It's no secret that I make sock monkeys because when I was sick, the sock monkeys were there in the hospital with me, and they helped me make my life better later on. I like to think of the sock monkeys as the change that I've made in the world. To me, sock monkeys are there to help people, even if it's just helping them be happy.

Teagan the sock monkey to the rescue!

One morning, I was getting ready to go to the day job, when I decided to take Teagan the sock monkey with me. I only managed to finish that one monkey the night before, and I was going to wait until I had others to take photos of*, but I brought him in anyway. It was just meant to be. That day, there were cards going around for a coworker who's been quite ill recently, so I took photos of Teagan, made up a quick tag for him, and then it was in with all the other get well items.

It was just meant to be. I just happened to have finished only one, appropriately colored monkey the night before, so I figured it was a sign that he needed to go to work immediately cheering someone up. Hopefully, the sock monkey mojo works just as well for my sick co-worker as it did for me when I was sick.

I do what I can to send out the monkeys to people who need them, but Operation Sock Monkey sends monkeys *everywhere* they're needed. It's a really awesome charity, and I think once I get the Winter Cheer Flock closer to finished, I'll have to make some more monkeys to donate. Of course, you don't have to be a professional sock monkey maker to donate to Operation Sock Monkey, they appreciate donations from everyone, or you can adopt a monkey (or polar bear, or bunny, or kitty) from their zoo. It's yet another way that sock monkeys help the world!

Of all the sock monkeys I've made, about 25 (though I have no idea for sure) have gone to Operation Sock Monkey. It's a small thing, but I hope that it helps, and I'm a firm believer in small things being capable of having a big impact. 








*I use the couch at the day job as a back drop because the lighting is better there than my house. No one cares, and most people are quite amused when I bring in more monkeys.

It's WINTER CHEER!!! *Kermit Flails*

It's time for WINTER CHEER!!! In case you can't tell, I'm super excited about it! Soon, I get to decorate the house (and my desk at work) with all of the shiny, glittery, sparkly things I can find and I can keep myself incredibly caffeinated by ingesting large amounts of sugar spiked with a bit of coffee*. I'll need that sugar and caffeine buzz when it comes to the holidays, because this year I have a lot of monkeys to make!

The first of the Winter Cheer Flock are now complete. I had to come up with this year's theme without the help of the wonderful Ninja Muse, so it was a bit hard, until I found the stash of winter/holiday socks. This year there will of course be non-holiday themed monkeys, each with a fleece scarf that matches their colors. But there will also be several special monkeys.

The special Winter Cheer Monkeys have been outfitted by their Nana's in the latest in winter sweater fashions. Naturally, some of the monkeys Nana's had better taste in sweaters than others, but no matter what, each monkey looks adorable in their sweater-- even if the sweater would win first place in an office ugly sweater contest.

Winter Cheer Monkeys!!!

Winter Cheer is for everyone, regardless of religion or lack thereof. It's just about being happy that it's Caramel Brulee Latte Season Winter and things get all shiny and sparkly during winter. Oooh... sparkly... *Tries to focus and not be distracted by all the glittery things*

There are monkeys for Christmas and Hanukkah, but also some monkeys with sweaters that are just winter themed. No one is exempt from the ugly sweaters!

Sparkle is very eager for his first Christmas (and his sweater is sparkly!)

Leor is ready to assist with lighting the Menorah! (Just don't let him do it himself)

Holly, and her fraternal twin Emmett are just happy it's winter and they can wear their reindeer sweaters now!

If you happen to be in North Attleboro, I'll be doing a craft fair with LOTS of Monkeyville monkeys (with and without sweaters) eager to be adopted! Stay tuned for details!

*I'm not even going to pretend to love coffee. I don't even like it that much, what I love are all the wonderful sugary things that go into coffee. Which is why I get SUPER excited that it's caramel brulee coffee season!

The Count Down to Winter Cheer!

The first thing you learn about hanging out with me in person is that knowing where every Starbucks is within a reasonable distance* is, because we will be going there, especially if you see me on a weekend. More often than not, I will ask my friends to meet me there. There just happens to be a Starbucks nicely situated in between our houses, so it's an easy place to meet. I'm not an addict**, I swear *twitch, twitch*

Wee Ninja Muse and I shared a Beantown coffee when I interview for the Day Job

For me, the seasons don't go: spring, summer, fall, winter, or even the New England variation. The seasons for me are: caramel macchiato, Frappacino, pumpkin spice, and caramel brulee latte. I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin spice lattes, but I know it's really fall when the pumpkin spice signs are out. Pumpkin spice season is in full swing here, but I'm already dreaming of caramel brulee time of year, not just because caramel brulee latte is my very favorite (umm... extra, extra sugar...) but also because the start of the caramel brulee season is also the start of the Winter Cheer season here in Monkeyville!

This year, Hanukkah starts at sun down the night before Thanksgiving, which is extra early, so Winter Cheer preparations have started extra early here in Monkeyville! Winter Cheer is for everyone, so while there will be some Hanukkah and Christmas themed monkeys, there will also be plenty of sock monkeys that are just really happy that it's caramel brulee time... er... I mean, that it's winter! Sock monkeys (or any monkeys really) shouldn't drink caramel brulee lattes, they have enough energy without the extra caffeine.

Eli is the only one in the house that drinks more coffee than I do, but he needs it to get all his coursework done.

I've already started sewing the sock monkeys for the Winter Cheer Flock, and the first two test monkeys for this year's theme are complete. I needed to do a bit of testing this year because I found an awesome stash of winter/Christmas themed socks that I hadn't had the chance to use yet, but I wanted to something special with them this year. I try to make each season's flock something different than I've done before. That usually means a bit of testing and at least one experimental monkey (Mwahahahaha). This year's test monkeys came out better than expected, so all that's left is to get first half of the new flock finished up.

I'm planning on debuting Winter Cheer on Monday, October 21st. It's early, but they monkeys need time to travel to their new homes before the holidays start.


*Reasonable is VERY subjective here.
**I prefer a Milkyway latte from Beantown, the little shop near my day job.There aren't Beantowns everywhere, so I have to settle for Starbucks.

The Fall 2013 Monkeyville Flock! Plus Exciting News!

Everywhere else, sock monkeys (and monkeys of the non-sock variety) come in troops, but here in Monkeyville, sock monkeys come in flocks. Maybe it's because they're fluffier than non-sock monkeys, maybe it's because they zoom in out of nowhere, or maybe it's because that's what Ninja Muse called a group of sock monkeys, and when you're luck enough to have a Ninja Muse, you go with what she says. Okay, so it might also, just a wee-bit also be because I forgot that monkeys come in troops, but mostly it's the Ninja Muse thing.

The first of the Fall 2013 Flock

The completion of the first part of the Fall 2013 Flock isn't the only exciting news I have to share though! These guys (the ones who haven't headed to new homes already) are now available in several places!

You can go into the following places and pick out a sock monkey of your own (and not have to worry about shipping):

Nyla, and her friends are available at POSH Design Center, Norwood MA

• POSH Design Center,  Located in Winsmith Mills, Norwood,  MA (that link has autoplay music, just in case you're sneaking a peek at Monkeyville while at work)

 

Rocky and his friends are available at The Arts Desire Torrington, CT

• The Arts Desire, Torrington, CT

 I've also been working very hard on making enough monkeys to not only stock the physical stores, but to also be sure to stock the online shops as well, since I know not everyone lives near Norwood or Torringing. Monkeyville monkeys can be found in two places online now!

Sienna and her friends are located on Etsy

Everett and his friends are up for adoption on Storenvy!

Since I don't make the same monkey over and over, all stores-- both online and physical-- have different monkeys!
I spent about a week working quite hard, saying things like "I never learned how to do this stuff! We didn't have the internet when I was in school*!" I finally broke down and asked the wonderful Ninja Muse to help me with the Storenvy shop, which she did wonderfully, and now there are links on Facebook to buy the monkeys directly from the Facebook page. *Squees* I hope that this will save a lot of effort for those people who would like to reserve their monkeys when they see the photos on Facebook. Now that Ninja Muse and I set everything up, I think it will be easy for everyone to use. YAY!


*Okay, we did have the internet when I was in college, but it was like the rough draft of the internet. Imagine if the whole internet was done on cheap newsprint paper, in charcoal. It was just like that, except the "whole internet" was mostly just Myspace. It was a bleak place back then.

Fall is Here!!!

It's officially fall here in New England! That means pretty leaves, weather I can walk to and from work to without feeling like I'm melting, and best of all-- ALL the Things are pumpkin spiced! YAY! *Kermit flails* Of course, I still drink my usually cup of milk and sugar with a bit of coffee added, but it's just nice to know that pumpkin spiced coffee is there should I have enough per-caffeine brain power to order one (I don't). Oh, and there's some sports things that nearly everyone I know is super excited about too.

I love this time of year, not just for the pumpkin spice coffee, beer (yum!), and pastries, but also because I get to start making my very favorite type of sock monkeys-- the Halloween monkeys! There's something about making zombies, skeletons, and pumpkin themed (though not pumpkin spiced!) monkeys that always makes me super happy. This year's Halloween Monkey Flock is called Dead Man's Tails and these monkeys combine some of my very favorite monkey styles-- they're skeleton (or zombie) pirate monkeys!

Captain Red Legs, the leader of the Pirate Monkey Flock

There's been a lot of activity on the seas of Monkeyville. There was a pretty epic Ninja vs Pirate battle with lots of casualties on the pirates side. Lots of eyes were lost to ninja stars, and those zombie and skeleton pirates remaining came ashore and have renounced their pirate-y ways. No more pillaging and plundering for them, they just want homes with lots of safe adventures and cuddling. The zombies have even gone to Zombies Anonymous to give up their addiction to eating brains. This wasn't really such a bad addiction since for sock monkeys, their brains are just fluffy stuffing. The only things in danger of being nommed were the couch cushions.

Gunnar the zombie pirate. Could that face be brain hungry? No way!

Several pirates have gone off to new homes, where they'll be loved and can "plunder" all the cuddles they want. I love making these guys, but I'm always glad when they get to go to a home where they'll be special and loved. Monkeyville is turning into a Monkey-opolis with lots and lots of monkey, so not too many of them get the special attention they need. It's kind of like having a litter of kittens. They're all cute and adorable, and you want to keep them all, but there aren't enough hours in the day to play with each one, so it's better to adopt them out to homes where they can be loved and cuddled and played with.

Fester the zombie doesn't actually glow. 

I haven't made too many other Halloween monkeys. This year's Fall Flock has been mostly non-holiday themed monkeys, though I did make Fester the zombie. There's something about tie-dye socks that just yell out to be made into a zombie. I have a few other pairs of zombie socks, but with Winter Cheer debuting soon (Hanukkah starts November 27th this year!) the rest of the zombies may have to wait until after the Winter Cheer monkeys are complete.


However, there are several pirate skeletons (and regular monkeys) just waiting to be adopted in the Monkeyville Etsy shop and I'll be hard at work in any and all available time making not just Winter Cheer monkeys, but non-holiday monkeys. My goal this fall is to use up all the socks I possibly can... which means LOTS of monkeys because I have at least 1000 pairs of socks in my house!



Stay tuned to the Monkeyville Blog and Facebook pages, because there's lots more exciting things coming soon!