Category Archives: Plaidypus Spotlight

Plaidypus Spotlight points out and gives kudos to connected or related businesses, fairs, organizations, etc.

Science for the Masses: Looking Glass Leggings

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Hippocampal Pyramidal Neuron w:o key

Large pyramidal neuron from rat hippocampus (the memory center of the brain!)

I want everyone to see how cool science can be. I want them to see how beautiful a cell can be if you let it.

When I tell people that I work with brains, half the time they get excited and ask me more. The other half of the time, however, they get a look of discomfort on their face and think that what I do is “icky.” So I went on a search for ways to show people that what I do and what I look at is actually quite beautiful.

I took a course in college on scanning electron microscopy (SEM), something I highly suggest looking up, because if there is anything that can make tiny things look beautiful, it’s SEM. I decided to take photos of the brain cells and spinal cord of a rat (that’s right, a rat).

These photos are what came from that class:

Through colorizing them and patterning them in different ways, I turned them into this fabric:

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And then turned them into these leggings:

My goal with these leggings is to both inspire people to add a little science into their life and wardrobe as well as ignite curiosity surrounding the items in the photos. I want people to look up what the heck a neurite is, what the hippocampus is for, and what is so special about cerebellar granule neurons.

If you need a little bit of science in your life, you can find Plaidypus Looking Glass Leggings in the “Leggings” section of our Etsy store, or at Wadoo Gifts in Fort Collins, CO. And remember, science is cool. Even rat brains.

Plaidypus Spotlight: Wadoo’s Annual Holiday Trunk Show in Fort Collins, CO

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Wadoo holiday trunk show featuring Plaidypus

Wadoo is this cute family business (my family, to be more specific) in Fort Collins, CO, that houses hundreds of artists’ works, and has been Plaidypus’s biggest supporter. We send them hundreds of coffee cup cozies, hand warmers, and headbands every year. We also participate in their Holiday Trunk Show, an annual festivity filled with champagne, chocolates, and local artists, which just so happens to be coming up in a week.

Here are the quick and dirty details for this year’s show:

What: Wadoo’s Annual Holiday Trunk Show
When: November 20th, from 4pm to 8:30pm
Where: Wadoo Gift store, 200 S. College Avenue, Fort Collins, CO

If you show, you’ll be treated to champagne and chocolates, as well as the opportunity to talk to and buy from local artists including myself, Alison Cope (felted garlands), Kimberly Orrell (sewn totes), Chris Reynolds (fabric baby accessories), Maura Jacobson (pottery), Heather Matthews (bike bands, cards, and advent calendars), and Leah Simmons Decapio (pottery and small tables). This is a particularly big deal that Leah will be here this year, as she lost her home and shop in the 2013 flood. But she and her husband have opened their studio again and will be here in Fort Collins to celebrate the holidays with us.

Plaidypus will be there with our bestsellers, such as our fuzzy crocheted hand warmers, our felted coffee cup cozies, and our t-shirt headbands.

Plaidypus handwarmers fuzzy fingerless gloves mittens crochetedPlaidypus felted wool sweater coffee cup cozyPlaidypus T-Shirt Headbands upcycled recycled

If local artists and chocolate are not enough for you (chocolate is always enough to get me somewhere, but to each their own), this year Wadoo is also adding a charity aspect to the show. During the event, you are invited to give in a variety of important ways:

1. Bring an unwrapped, new toy to donate to Santa Cops;
2. Bring non-perishable food for the Food Bank Of Larimer County;
3. Purchase personal-care gift bags created by Windrift Hill and available at cost ($12) to be donated to residents of Crossroads Safehouse, or donate cash to Crossroads.

To learn more about these charity organizations (they’re all pretty cool), click on their corresponding logo below (or their links in the descriptions above):

Santa Cops charity at wadoo furniture and gift store annual holiday trunk show featuring platypuslarimer county food bank charity at wadoo furniture and gift store annual holiday trunk show featuring platypuscrossroads safe house at wadoo furniture and gift store annual holiday trunk show featuring plaidypus

The show allows you to come out and support local businesses, local artists, and local charities while getting yourself some chocolate and champagne. It was created simply for the joy of sharing festivities with customers and bonding over warm feelings and good art. Who doesn’t love that?

Plaidypus Spotlight: Wadoo Gift Store in Fort Collins, CO

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I wanted to show some love to the store that first gave me a chance and helped in the subsequent development of my business. This is, of course, the one-and-only Wadoo.

Wadoo Furniture and Gifts Sign in Downtown Fort Collins, Colorado

Wadoo dwells in downtown Fort Collins (if you live there, it’s in old town across the street from those funky fountains that children are always playing in) and is home to a diverse array of talented and whimsy artists from across the United States (and a few odd places like Canada or Isreal).

20140617-174631-63991813.jpgIf you stroll into Wadoo, one of the ladies who work there will be able to tell you almost anything you would want to know about each and every artist. You go in and you say, “Tell me more about these cup cozies,” and they’ll say, “Oh, those are made from old felted sweaters! The company is called Plaidypus. She’s local. She just graduated from Colorado College. Her favorite flowers are daffodils and her least favorite thing about driving is…” You get the point.

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They are probably the most helpful people you will ever meet.

And a lot of them are also artists in the store! Chris Reynolds makes some rockin’ baby bibs, Jennie Milner makes some funky poured resin jewelry, and sometimes you can see the owner, Amy Satterfield, making coasters from old children’s books behind the counter.

Wadoo is particularly important to me because this is where Plaidypus started. This is the shop that took a chance on a pair of fuzzy fingerless mittens and allowed Plaidypus to grow and succeed. Plaidypus even gets its own section of the store now! Wadoo is where Plaidypus gets most of its business and how most people hear about us, so it’s important in that aspect, too.

Wadoo Furniture and Gifts Fort Collins Plaidypus Area Plaidypus upcycled headbands made from t-shirts in Wadoo Furniture and Gifts Plaidypus up cycled coffee cup cozies made from felted sweaters in Wadoo Furniture and Gifts

Here’s my late-to-the-game disclaimer: I work there, too (and my mother may or may not own the store so it is kinda sorta a family business). So I might be a little biased as I describe the place as the most magical store on earth. But it’s also just the most magical store on earth, so definitely check it out if you’ve got a few minutes. It’s got a nifty website, a Facebook page, as well as the actual physical storefront if you’re in Fort Collins for the day.

IMG_0025Wadoo Furniture and Gifts Local Pottery Fort CollinsWadoo Furniture and Gifts Jewelry Display Cases, Gifts, and Furniture