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TDS shop – one week in!

by Kaylah Stroup January 24, 2019

It has been six full days since I relaunched The Dainty Squid shop and what a week it has been!

The response blew all of my expectations out of the water. I am still over the moon about all of the orders I got to ship out, especially now that some of those people are beginning to post photos on social media. (Oh my gosh, I can’t even explain how happy that makes me!) I’m flattered, excited, and even more inspired than ever!

The second round of mail that went out! 

I thought going into the launch that I had a lot in stock that it’d last me for a bit buuut that was not the case. I spent my week sewing my butt off trying to play catch up. That means today I listed a whole bunch of new items in new fabrics AND introduced a new size.

In The Dainty Squid’s last life, I called this size ‘cosmetics pouch’ but I’m going with ‘flat bottom pouch’ this time around. They’re roomy, they stand on their own, and holy smokes, they are cute. Right now there are only a few in stock but I have plans to expand the number of fabrics I make them in and make a larger size as well.

Look at those scissors! Also, that fabric glows in the dark! I am very excited about it.

Just a short and sweet post today but I do have plans to share more behind the scene peeks in the future and give a bit more warning about shop updates. I really had no idea what a wild week it’d be after opening up shop. (THANK YOUUUU!)

Check out all the new pouches here.
xoxo

Please refer to product listings for the most accurate colors. The photos in this post have been edited more to fit my photography style than to properly represent colors.
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abandoned school – snow day!

by Kaylah Stroup January 22, 2019

Over the weekend Ohio got smacked with a HUGE snow storm. The amount of snow wasn’t quite so extreme, at least in my opinion, but the wind made massive snow drifts. It was nearly impossible to keep sidewalks, driveaways, and roads clear. While nearly everyone hunkered down for a cozy couple of days, my friends and I thought this would be a good time to get out and explore. We can literally do nothing all summer but as soon as the cold weather comes around, we all of sudden want to be out all the time. It’s stupid and never all that comfortable but it is fun. Jeff got a new Jeep last year so this snow storm was the perfect test of his 4wheel drive. We were able to effortlessly navigate the snowy roads and make our way to an abandoned school that had recently come on to our radar.

The majority of the windows are boarded up meaning a lot of sections have exactly zero light. The other windows, with boards removed and window broken, let in very little morning light but did offer lots of snow and bitter cold wind. We didn’t peek in every class room and missed large sections of the building but still, the three of us couldn’t have been more pleased with the morning. Sometimes, in places like this one, you’re just full of such excitement that it’s hard to concentrate of seeing everything and setting up the best shots. It can definitely be overwhelming. We spent an hour and half of our morning exlaiming to one another ‘check this out!’ and ‘did you see this!?’

I can’t think of a better way to spend a snowy morning.

One of my favorite parts of this building was this snow pile. I spotted it from the hallway. The room was pitch black but I could see something large and conical. I shined my flashlight on it for a better look. It took a few seconds for my brain to realize it was snow coming in from the roof! After this one, I spotted a couple more of them throughout the school but none as perfect as this one.

I’m not wildly impressed with the photos I took. A stronger flashlight was definitely in order so I basically just played off Jeff and Jake’s lights. Still, it was a fun adventure. It’s always a blast to explore a new place together, especially one this large. I’m looking forward to getting back, armed with a better light source, and capturing some more shots before this place is gone.
xoxo

Use the ‘abandoned‘ tag to view more posts on forgotten buildings across the US.

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Friday Favorites #499

by Kaylah Stroup January 18, 2019
This post contains affiliate links. Check out our disclosure policy for more details.

Donut kill my vibe. I’ve posted so many things from Pyknic lately. I just keep finding fun new things they have. I even ended up buying one of their shirts, Raise Hell Eat Tacos, earlier this week!

(via Pyknic)

Loving these vases! They’re cute and affordable.

(via Anthropologie)

Oh! The pattern on this top. Love it so much.

(via Modcloth)

One of my favorite pairs of shoes are available online again! These babies are so incredibly comfortable and surprisingly match a lot of my wardrobe. I’ve been meaning to grab the black pair too.

(photo by me, shoes via the Fix)

Not only does it have room for displaying knick knacks, you can even charge your devices from this lamp!

(via Urban Outfitters)

This cabinet is just… the best!

(via Amazon)

This sweater!

(via Joanie Clothing)

Velour overalls! YES!

(via Amazon)

Love this pennant.

(via Three Potato Four)

How ridiculous is this planter?! I’m so into it!

(via Urban Outfitters)

Link love…

  • If you just happened to be in the market for a letterboard, check out this one. IT’S RAINBOW!
  • It’s a simple black dress but it also looks like it fits perfectly and could be one of those items of clothing you wear nonstop.
  • A dress covered in tiny paperclips! Aaaand a t-shirt covered in stationery items!
  • Its a toucan watering can!!
  • This ‘sweatshirt dress‘ looks like it’d make THE coziest night gown. That is exactly the kind of thing I like to sleep in.
  • Another sweatshirt type thing I want to live in – y’all, the sweatshirt blanket! Holy smokes, that looks cozy.
  • Yes please to this bralette and shorts set.
  • A suuuuper cute black and white striped dress, perfect for summer + less than $10!

Also, majorly exciting news today – it’s opening day for the new Dainty Squid shop!

Happy Friday!
xoxo

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The Dainty Squid v2.0 is open!

by Kaylah Stroup January 18, 2019

Today’s the day! The Dainty Squid 2.0 is live!

I’ve been working my tail off trying to get everyting photographed and listed in time. I knew I had made a lot of items but I didn’t realize I had made just over 100 listings worth. A lot of the pouches I made doubles of right off the bat since I hoped they’d sell quickly which means I’ve sewn up 150+ items in the past month. It feels great!


This little baby is my pride and joy of the reopening! This isn’t the first time I’ve gotten custom fabric printed but it is the first time I have ever drawn something that I got printed. I’m over the moon about how it turned out. My denture drawing translated really well to fabric, the print is crisp and bright. I’m just so pleased. I also had the pattern printed in a slightly different size specifically for coin pouches which turned out equally as awesome.

I’m hoping in the future to get more custom fabrics made, maybe even more that I’ve drawn. Drawing certainly isn’t my strong suit but, fingers crossed, with more practice maybe I’ll start to get a firmer grasp of it.

More favorites below! One of a kind patchwork pouches with faux leather zipper pulls.

Another highlight of the relaunch is releasing two new styles of pouches. Boxy pen pouches and boxy coin pouches. They’re the same basic concept but two very different sizes. Each has a d-ring on both sides of the zipper so you can attach it to your keys or to the inside of your bag. It also gives you something to grab on to while you zip and unzip. I love them.

Wooo! I’m so happy to finally be sharing all this and getting back in the groove of sewing regularly. I’m excited for the what the future holds.

Check it all out here.
xoxo

Please refer to product listings for the most accurate colors. The photos in this post have been edited more to fit my photography style than to properly represent colors.
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my favorite desert oasis – the wigwam

by Kaylah Stroup January 16, 2019

Normally the travel locations I feature here on The Dainty Squid are a little more offbeat. I post about cemeteries, giant roadside animals, abandoned buildings, and other unique spots we stumble upon. I’ve never dedicated an entire post to our lodging choices aside from, coincidentally, Wigwam Village – which is of no affiliation. The Wigwam though, this place is something special! We even had our wedding reception here!

This post is essentially four years in the making. Since the second I walked into the room on our very first visit back in 2015 I knew this was somewhere I needed to blog about.  Our visits are just never long enough. My time is usually spent lounging in bed, swimming in the saltwater pool or filling my face with delicious food.

For our six month wedding anniversary, Jeff and I headed back to the areas we hit on our wedding road trip. We stayed the night in the hotel we got ready for our wedding at, revisited the ceremony site, and perhaps most excitingly, we spent a few nights at The Wigwam. Between eating churros in bed (three different dipping sauces! OMG!) and pretending it wasn’t too cold to swim (surprisingly, Phoenix does get cold-ish sometimes!) Jeff and I took a walk around the property specifically so I could take some photos.

the wigwam review

Gorgeous, right!? Like I said, I was smitten since the second I laid eyes upon this place. We ended up here on our second roadtrip together. We had flown into Phoenix and spent a few days wandering the desert opting to sleep in the car most nights. The last night though, we wanted to get a place semi-close to the airport so we could wake up refreshed, and clean up before the flight. Jeff found The Wigwam, saw that it was about a half hour from the airport, super affordable for how nice it looked and booked it.

We definitely weren’t expecting something this nice though! We walked into the room and I immediately facetimed my mom. ‘Look at this place! It has three sinks! It’s huge!!’ Since we had gotten there fairly late, and were flying out first thing in the morning we didn’t have the opportunity to check it all out but the tiny taste we had gotten made us hungry for more. We vowed to visit again someday.

‘Someday’ came a lot sooner than expected… because let’s be honest most the time when you say you’re gonna revisit a place it doesn’t happen for a long time, if ever! We made it a point to visit again the next year! Once again, we only spent a single night but we made it a priority to get there early and really take advantage of everything they had to offer.

After that visit, I was hooked. I couldn’t wait to go back. Jeff and I talked about it constantly. I saw on their website that they had weddings. Despite the fact we weren’t even engaged yet I was obsessed with the idea. Getting our friends and family out there seemed outlandish but a girl can dream, aye?

Well, fast forward another year and there we were sitting poolside with our friends and family mere hours after tying the knot. We opted to get married somewhere else special to us, the ghost town of Two Guns but after the ceremony and photos, everyone reconvened at The Wigwam for food and a couple days of poolside fun. It couldn’t have been more perfect.

Hotel reviews aren’t my thing but I guess to cover all my bases on this post I should tell you that the beds are the coziest I’ve ever slept in. All of the rooms we’ve stayed in have had giant bathtubs. Their food is the bomb dot com. (Get yourself the quesadillas with shrimp from Wigwam Bar! I can also personally recommend their burger, the hummus trio, and the wings – which are actually the only wings I eat on the bone because they’re that good!) There are multiple pools, one of which has slide and the other is a saltwater pool. I can’t choose a favorite between the two! Clearly, from the photos you should be able to see, the landscaping is beautiful. It’s truly an escape from the norm!

There are also dozens of other awesome things to do there other than sleep, swim and eat – although I can vouch for those things being spectacular! There’s a spa, you can golf, play tennis, rent a bike (free with the resort fee) and there is almost always some sort of event going on.

There are a few other resort style accommodations in Arizona that have caught my eye but honestly, I can’t imagine going all the way out there and not staying at The Wigwam now, especially since it holds so many special memories.

Until next time, The Wigwam! I’m sure it won’t be too long until I see you again!
xoxo

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Friday Favorites #498

by Kaylah Stroup January 11, 2019
This post contains affiliate links. Check out our disclosure policy for more details.

Looooove this eye container and catch all tray! There’s even a matching rug.

(via Amazon)

Ugh, this rug! It’s so pretty. Similarly, this rug is also pretty dreamy! Honestly, just gimme all the black and white rugs.

(via Amazon)

Love these shoes! I can just picture them with this polka dot dress.

(via )

Last week I shared that I had spotted the split cam for just $5, and this week I found that the pop cam is the same price! I can’t believe how cheap. Obviously, yes, it is a cheap plastic camera but you can 100% get amazing photos with it. Get yourself some 400 ISO film (or higher!), shoot only in bright sun, and have fun!

(via Amazon)

Moon phase wall hanging!

(via Urban Outfitters)

So cute.

(via Sock Genius)

I mean…. it really is the best reason to read in public.

(via cozygal)

Very into this jumper! Its super affordable, has great reviews and even comes in a few other colors. I think it goes without saying, I’d definitely pair it with a black and white striped top! (via Lily & Parker)

I really enjoy Bethany Leah Jones’ work.

(via Bethany Leah Jones)

!!!

(via )

Link love…

  • Because I had to look at it, now you do too… hot dog soap.
  • Very very into ! Comes in too!
  • These moon curtains! Oh, so darn pretty!
  • In last week’s Friday Favorites I shared the super cute animal paper clips. Well, I just saw that there are bicycle ones too!!
  • It’s a striped top with a raccoon peeking out the pocket. OMG.
  • Look at the leaves on this beautiful plant.
  • !!!

Happy Friday!
xoxo

PS. If you’re still looking for more fun things to browse, I made up a list of fun stationery finds!

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The Dainty Squid (shop!) is coming back

by Kaylah Stroup January 10, 2019

Unlike every single year ever previous to this one, for 2019 I didn’t write up a huge list of goals I want to accomplish. I did, however, take on one very big project that I am super excited to share…

The Dainty Squid is coming back!

The Dainty Squid in its original form, that is! I am back to sewing. FULL FORCE! What a way to start the year, right!?! I’m super stoked and basically just putting my all into this. I’m so very excited to share this news, and really get this party started!

A bit of history;
The Dainty Squid started around eleven years ago as an Etsy shop. I sold various handmade goods and eventually found my niche sewing zipper pouches and other small bags. Over the next few years, I sold thousands. Literally. I even sold wholesale to brick and mortars stores across the US. It was my life.

Eventually, I wore myself out. I was right one the brink of a HUGE life change (moving to Cleveland!) and basically wanted to ditch all of my old routines. I needed something new. I had been making pretty consistent money blogging so my sewing machine and I broke up. I sold all my supplies, put the remainder of stock on clearance and said ‘goodbye’ to my little sewing business.

Why am I coming back now?
Shortly before Christmas, I spotted an email in my spam folder from a man whose wife had purchased a pouch from me ten years ago. She’d been using it all this time but it understandably was pretty beat up after so many years. He wanted to know if I could help track down the fabric since it was such a fun pattern. My first reaction was ‘Aw, that’s nice but I am definitely over that chapter.” An hour later, I was still thinking about his email. ‘I guess it wouldn’t hurt to help hunt down the fabric.’ Another hour and I’m emailing the guy telling him to ship the fabric to me and I’ll make her a brand new pouch.

A couple days later, the fabric showed up in my mail box. I immediately got to work and made her five brand new pouches. You know what? It felt GOOD. Like, reeeally really good. Everything from the way my shears felt cutting the fabric to the smell of the iron was just perfect. I felt like me. Suddenly I missed The Dainty Squid. I wanted to be sewing again. I craved the feeling of creating something.

I woke up the next day thinking about starting The Dainty Squid up again. It consumed my mind. The day after that I was ordering fabric and other supplies to get started.

It just feels right. I had no idea how much I missed sewing. So funny how I went all this time never really thinking too much about it. That one little email sparked something though. It reminded me how much I truly loved making things and selling online.

When?! Where?!
I am planning the grand re-opening for Friday, January 18th! Mark your calendars! I would give you a time but my thought as of right now is that I’ll probably be listing things for a good portion of the day. I’ve been so busy building stock, there’s A LOT!

I’ll be opening up on Etsy under the name ‘thedaintysquid‘, of course. Right now, the shop isn’t open yet but you can still hit follow if you’d like to keep an eye on it.

I will absolutely be posting again here on the blog on opening day, and sharing more peeks over on instagram in the meantime.

Two last things…
▴ If you’re still using an old pouch of mine, I’d love to see! Since I started sharing peeks of my sewing projects on instagram I’ve been getting messages with photos of pouches y’all bought 8+ years ago. I can’t even begin to describe how amazing that feels. I’m proud my work has lasted and seriously tickled pink that anyone would hang on it. It’s just been fuel for my fire, inspiring me even further to create! Thank you for supporting me.

▴ I will be taking on wholesale orders!  If you have a brick and mortar store and would like my line sheet, shoot me an email! Be sure to include a link to your site/social media.

xoxo

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a few of my favorite posts from 2018

by Kaylah Stroup January 9, 2019

three best spots for beachcombing in Cleveland

I know I post a lot of trash that I find on the beach but that’s not all Cleveland’s beaches have to offer, I promise! In this post I share my three personal favorite spots to look for treasures in right outside of downtown.

plant pressing tips

Such an easy yet satisfying hobby. It literally just takes a book of some sort to start!

tips for keeping your hair healthy, shiny & strong

Surprisingly not too many hair posts on The Dainty Squid in 2018. I am pretty pleased with the three I did share though. Lots of great tips and things to think about in each.

More to read; nine truths about having dyed hair and affordable + dyeable hair extensions

my three favorite Cleveland cemeteries

Ya know, in case you’re like me and map out the cemeteries you’d like to visit in any new city!

nail art idea – the scotch tape method

In 2018, I ended up falling back in love with painting my nails. The two posts I’m linking here share tips on how to do some of my favorite designs.

More to read; nail stickers how to + FAQ

GOgroove camera bag review

Such an unbelievely awesome camera bag, especially for the price!

Cleveland favorites

Cleveland is such a great city. I love it here so much. In this post, I share my favorite coffee shops, the only ice cream place you need to know about, and some yummy places to eat.

Canon Powershot G7 X Mark II – first impressions

One of my bigger purchases this year was this point and shoot. It was something that I had been thinking about buying for a while but wasn’t 100% sure I really needed it. Well, I’m certainly glad to have this camera! It makes it so easy to take photos of everyday life. I’m capturing all the little moments I didn’t before because carrying my big camera was too much of a hassle or I didn’t think it was worth setting up the shot for.

More to read; Polaroid Originals OneStep 2 review

Digit review – an update

If one of your goals for the new year is to save money – go read this post! I honestly do think Digit is an app that everyone could benefit from. I still have nothing but positive things to say about them.

five tips for buying clothes on Amazon

Five tips that will help make finding all the best clothes on Amazon much easier.

More 2018 recaps –
This year I…
8 favorite clothing purchases 2018

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19 calendars for 2019

by Kaylah Stroup January 8, 2019

1. watercolor 2. animal portraits 3. kitchen friends 4. orchid 5. moon 6. dogs & plants 7. constellations 8. nature 9. breakfast & brunch 10. space cat 11. cults 12. collections 13. minimilist 14. dachshund 15. getting through 2019 16. fashionable hens 17. birds in hats 18. bicycle 19. butterfly

At the beginning of each year I normally take everything off my bulletin board and put up all new things. It’s my little way of starting the year with a fresh slate. I love picking out a new calendar and tiny pieces of art to put up on it. I’ve been a little busy this year though, working hard on a new project, and haven’t really felt like dedicating the time to it just yet. Instead I’ve just spent my spare time browsing the internet for a cute 2019 calendar I might want to be the star of my board. Pictured in this post are 19 of my favorites that I found.

On top of calendar shopping, I also spent some time browsing pretty desk items… because the new year is a great excuse to buy a few new stationery goodies! I curated a little list of some of my favorite finds over on Amazon if you’d like to take a peek.

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About Me

About Me

Hello!

I'm Kaylah! Renovating a 150-year-old home in Northeast Ohio. Likely found in my garden.

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THE DAINTY SQUID
  • blog
    • all the posts!
    • stroup mansion
    • some of my favorite posts
    • plants + gardening
    • beauty, fashion + hair
    • reviews
    • window shopping
    • explore everywhere
  • about me
  • contact
  • shop