After 9 fun and amazing years on Main Street, we’ve decided not to renew our lease this spring. We love making stuff, and we love making stuff with you, so we’re hoping to find a new home for our DIY or Die!!! workshops and classes, but we haven’t figured out the details yet. We’ll keep you posted!  Our last class in this space is going to be the Wet-felted Wrist Warmers on Sunday, February 17th. If you’ve already registered for a class that we had originally scheduled for March or April, you’ll hear from us sometime in the next day or two as we reschedule those classes, or refund your fee if you the change doesn’t suit you.

We hope you have time to join us Wednes­day, Novem­ber 28th, from 6:30 — 9 p.m. for the Project Figo wrap-up! This is your chance to come in and not only make a wish with the giant Figo, but also to make a Figo Wish­ing Doll of your very own to take home with you! We’ll sup­ply all the required mate­ri­als, but please feel free to bring along any spe­cial embell­ish­ment that you’d like to add to your Figo. Par­tic­i­pa­tion is by dona­tion, with all pro­ceeds going to the Make-a-Wish Foun­da­tion.

Look, we know what you think of us. We know you think everything about us is cute, and adorable, and warm and fuzzy… and, well, you’re mostly right. So you might be surprised to find out that Hallowe’en is our most favourite holiday EVER, but only until you stop and think about it! Hallowe’en is a DIYer’s dream, when costume– and prop-making is encouraged (even expected!), and “more” is almost always better. As in: more rubber bats, more fake blood, more styrofoam gravestones in the front yard, more make-up, more zombies, and of course, more sequins, feathers, and rhinestones! (It’s true. Hallowe’en with the Plushettes sometimes looks like Mardis Gras gone very, very wrong.)

Here’s a little round-up of what we’ve got going on in the studio for Hallowe’en. And yes, we’ve managed to inject a little bit of our “warm and fuzzy” into even this, the creepiest of holidays!

Sugar Skull Mask Workshop

Tuesday, October 16th   6:30 — 8:30

Cel­e­brate the sea­son with Miriam Melan­son’s painted sugar skull mask class! The base will be pre-made for you, leav­ing you the full two hours to dec­o­rate and embell­ish it to your heart’s con­tent. $35 includes all mate­ri­als and use of tools. Please call Plush (604 708 5199) to reserve your seat or book online.

 Mask and Fascinator Workshop

Tuesday, October 23rd   6:30 — 8:30

Miriam Melan­son of Flam­ing Angels is back for a spe­cial edi­tion of our fas­ci­na­tor work­shop and she’s bring­ing along her creepi­est crawlies for this one! Whether you want to cre­ate the per­fect mask to fin­ish off your cos­tume or whip up a ghoul­ishly glam­ourous hair fas­ci­na­tor just to cel­e­brate the sea­son, we’ve got you cov­ered (actu­ally, you should be able to com­plete at least two pieces over the course of this class, so there’s no rea­son not to do both!). $35 includes all mate­ri­als and use of tools. Please call Plush (604 708 5199) to reserve your seat or book online.

Pumpkin Workshop (Level 1 Needle-felting)

Wednesday, October 24th   6:30 — 8:30

These lit­tle pump­kins are an adorable (and, dare we say it.… warm and fuzzy?) way to get ready for Hallowe’en! $35 includes all mate­ri­als and use of tools. Please call Plush (604 708 5199) to reserve your seat or book online.

To win one of your very own, just hit the “comment” section below and tell us the weirdest thing you’ve ever seen somebody eat for lunch, or the most outlandish thing you’ve ever had for lunch yourself. On Sunday, August 19th, 2012 we’ll choose a name at random and one lucky person will win the lunchbag of their choice! Urban Harmonie has even offered to make one just for you, with any two of their current fabric options.

And if you’re wondering, the weirdest lunch we’ve ever witnessed was a peanut butter and dill pickle sandwich. On rye.

UPDATE: Congratulations to HollyAnne, whose name we pulled from our hat!

The inaugural edition of Main Street’s newest shopping event is fast approaching! Come out on the evening of Thursday, July 19th from 6 until 9 to get great discounts at some of Vancouver’s best independent shops and restaurants. Plush will have 30% off everything in the shop! Seriously, everything. So if you’re waiting for the right time to come in and buy something from a fantastic local artist, this is it!

Turn messes into cheeky fun with these Bullseye Burp Blankets and Honest Washcloths from My Favourite Blanket. Hand made out of a soft and super-absorbant cotton/bamboo blend that is washer and dryer safe. Because, after all, they are designed to get… dirty.

Give Mom a little time-out with a treat from the Naked Soapworks line of bodycare products. Naked products are 100% natural, handmade in small batches, and guaranteed cruelty-free! They also smell delicious enough to eat.

What kind of mom would like to be given a seat to one of our workshops? A mom with little kids at home who could use an afternoon away from them, or a mom with adult kids who would like to spend an afternoon with them! And it’s no coincidence that we have a Card Making Workshop scheduled for Mother’s Day this year. It starts at 1:30, which leaves you plenty of time to treat Mom to a yummy brunch on Main Street first.

If classes aren’t Mom’s thing, you can still spend some quality creative time together with a needle-felting kit from Blushing Lotus. Learning a new skill together is always a bonding event!

It’s true, jewelry is hardly an unusual gift for Mother’s Day! That having been said, we have a fantastic collection of unique pieces from Pink Gargoyle Designs, Megz Majewski, Lotus Flower Pendants, and A Cagey Bee, among others. Whether Mom’s already a fan of one of our artists or whether you’ll be introducing her to something new, we’re sure to have a piece she’ll love.

Oh, and if you’re still thinking of flowers and candy, may we suggest that while you’re on Main Street you visit The Flower Factory (Flower arrangers extraordinaire!) and Chocolaterie de la Nouvelle France (Trust us. We know our bonbons, and these are delicious!).

We packed up a bucketful of colourful wool roving, some felting needles, and a big woolen easter egg, and then invited people to try their hand at a little bit of needle-felting.

People really didn’t need a lot of coaxing! Turns out most people really like being given the opportunity to repeatedly stab something.

The end result of the evening’s efforts was impressive!

Now that we’ve had a little taste, we’re already getting giddy about the main event in June. The Vancouver Mini Maker Faire is only in its second year, and has already outgrown its first home (the BCIT campus on Great Northern Way) and has moved to the Forum Room at the PNE (they grow up so fast, don’t they?). Mark your calendars, you won’t want to miss it!

The doors open at 5:00, and the suggested donation is $10-$15. As a bonus, your admission to the fundraiser also gets you in to see the MOVs current exhibitions!

Well, this month we’re embracing our idiosyncrasies with a little competition to settle once and for all who’s the flakiest of them all! Participating businesses are competing for bragging rights as to who’s got the best winter window display. What’s in it for you? How about the chance to win one of three killer prize baskets (valued at about $300 a piece!) full of goodies and gift cards from local merchants? Not too shabby! And for extra karma points, don’t forget to drop off your non-perishable donation for the foodbank at any participating business (businesses with ballot boxes are also authorized to take monetary donations for the food bank). Actually, never mind the karma points –bring a little something for the food bank to Plush when you come cast your ballot, and we’ll give you 5% off your purchases! Hey, win-win-win all around!

You can pick up your ballot at any participating store, and cast your vote at one of the designated voting stations (psssst… we’re one of them). Flake Out runs from December 3rd to 18th, with the prize draws being held at On The Fringe Hair Designs at 4:00 p.m. on the 18th.