To-Do List 10-21-11

This post is more for my sanity than anything else.  But on the other hand, I'm thinking about doing a giveaway soon!  Who's with me?

~Alter the peasant dress (which may entail more work than I thought) It's done!  (hehehe!)  And I didn't have to tear it apart!
~Belt and bag to match peasant dress (I have some nice microsuede polyester for this!)<-- This is not done because I realized that my poly suede doesn't match.  I think I'll just buy a belt.  And save the poly suede for a different bag.
~Make the "fur" lined coat--This has been put on the back burner.  It's not all that important that I get it done.  I have all winter to wear it.
~Dollywood bag--I think I'm going through with it.  It shouldn't (shouldn't being the keyword) take long
~A-line skirt with black, white and pink plaid material
~Make a tutorial for the selvage earrings.<--Got the pictures made!  They are super cute! 
~Remake a train engineer hat for an order.  I knew in the back of my mind that this might happen though.  I made the hat a little too small.
~Redesign my jewelry case idea.  I like the new design much better
~Made the executive decision that I'm going to All About Fabrics again tomorrow for some molded plastic zippers and rip-stop nylon--These are for new travel kits Turns out I didn't need molded plastic zippers.  Oh well, they were cheap
~I'd really like to make a "catalog" of stuff that I make.

Now for the new stuff:
~Try printing on ribbons and fabric using some tutorials I found online
~Make my Pretties with the wine satin and white lace.  Got that idea here --> Etcetorize
~Make the Sweater Bangles like I found here --> A Very Sweet November
~Make a Ruffle scarf like Merediths here --> Haute to Sew
~More Travel Kits and Gift Card Holders

And for the Must be Done Monday List:
~Get up early (hmm, this doesn't sound right, get up early on my day off...)
~Finish off my pedicure gift card from my Mother-in-law :)
~Find some bangles to make above said bangles
~Find some brown leg warmers, maybe...
~Find a dress belt if not done before Monday
~The Pretties
~Sweater Bangles
~Dollywood Bag
~Then if I have time, the pre-cut Travel Kits and Gift Card Holders

I should probably get up at about 6 AM.  That oughta do it.

No Awkward, Just Awesome!

I was going to link up to Awkward and Awesome again, but I realized there wasn't anything awkward (at least not that I can remember) that happened to me this week.  I got a lot of stuff done this week.  I think this post is going to turn into a done and to-do post with a few bits of awesomeness at the end.  Here's my list from last week with what I got done crossed off:

~3 black wallets for my Mother-in-Law
~Blue, green and brown wallet for my coworker
~5 Year Old sized Clemson Grayson Leigh hat for a custom order~Alter the peasant dress (which may entail more work than I thought)
~Belt and bag to match peasant dress (I have some nice microsuede polyester for this!)
~While I'm talking about the dress, make a scarf from the scraps (Imagining that it will be really cute with a white long sleeve tee and denim skirt) (See my WIWW post for this week for that idea) and earrings from the selvage
~Make the "fur" lined coat--This has been put on the back burner.  It's not all that important that I get it done.  I have all winter to wear it.
~Make up bags
~Curling iron holders Got one prototype done, it's functional, but I've got some tweaking to do.
~Gift card holders/wallets These are cute!  Got to make lots more for the Christmas season though
~Make a scarf out of an old grimey t-shirt as inspired by The Crafty CPA's T-Shirt Recyling Ideas (this link leads to her blog post which links to a tutorial)--I'll probably do this tonight while watching Storage Wars with Hubs Also in my WIWW post for this week
~Dollywood bag?
~A-line skirt with black, white and pink plaid material

So I have all that to do, plus a few other things:
~Make a tutorial for the selvage earrings.  The more I sew, the more selvages I acquire, and I think that these earrings will be a cute addition to any seamstress's accessory wardrobe
~Remake a train engineer hat for an order.  I knew in the back of my mind that this might happen though.  I made the hat a little too small.
~Redesign my jewelry case idea. 
~Made the executive decision that I'm going to All About Fabrics again tomorrow for some molded plastic zippers and rip-stop nylon--These are for new travel kits
~I'd really like to make a "catalog" of stuff that I make.  This comes after a friend who owns a salon said she might want to carry some of my stuff.  I'd like to have a brochure at least of the things that are in my shop and some color options.  It would be easier than saying, "go to my shop at whatever address" or "here's my business card."  I think this might get me more business than a card.

Ooh, I had almost forgot!  I had considered doing a party like Scentsy and 31 parties for my stuff.  This might take more work than I can handle before the Christmas season, but it's still a dream. 

And the bit of awesomeness that excited me the most this afternoon?  Old Navy has released this season's Performance Fleece!  I want these, especially the Houndstooth one, and they're only $8 this weekend!

Awkward and Awesome

I've been following Natalie at Blonde at Heart for a few months now, I think, and what initially made me fall in love with her blog were her Awkward and Awesome posts that are part of a link party.  (Click on the picture to go to the original link party.)  After reading the awkwardness and awesomeness of her week, I fell in love with Natalie's love for style, friends, her youth group and most importantly, God.  It's so much fun for me to find great God-fearing women who live all the way across the country.  Anyway, I thought it would be fun to link up myself, so here goes:

Awkward...

~Asking a coworker what the password was to one of our machines.  Not so awkward until we both finally realized that it was right above the screen where I entered the password.

~Dropping tube caps several different times all over the floor.

~This here is both awkward and awesome.  Awesome because I made a cute checkbook wallet with an ID window to match my new bag:

Awkward because I miscalculated my seam allowances and top stitching, so that even though it looks cool, nothing, not even the checkbook fits.

Oh well, lesson learned.  I'll just have to make another one. 

~Really Awkward:  Getting accidentally "felt up" by your 21 year old brother while you were playing monkey-in-the-middle with him and his girlfriend...at church!  But it was kind of awesome because Sam got really embarassed.  He got more padding than anything anyway :P

Awesome...

~There were 84 kids at our church's Wednesday night youth service!  I can't wait until I switch jobs so I can be a part of it!

~Date night with Hubs last Saturday night

~Two and possibly three Etsy orders in one week!

~My new bag! 

I really liked the general shape of the Made by Rae Buttercup Bag (there's a free pattern behind that link), but I liked the depth and the two pleats and straight lines at the top and sides of These Ickady Bags on Etsy, with the one big panel like Sew Spoiled's Ladybug Bags.  So I just piled what I liked from each one and drew up my own pattern for it.  I love it!  PS. if you love it too, I have it for sale in My Etsy Shop.

~Two days off next week that include another date night!

 

~Most awesomest:  Get ready for a long metaphor here...Having God knock your bowl full of milk and Cheerios out of your hands (I love my Cheerios in the morning), having a big cry over the spilled cereal, having several women (some who I know offline, others who I know online) coming to help you clean up the mess, then after those dear women have given you hugs and left, you look down into your bowl and realize it's full of peanut M&M's instead of Cheerios.  My heart is so full right now because of some of the things God is doing for me.  

I encourage anyone reading to at least think about what has been Awkward and Awesome this week.  It's made me not take my self too seriously (which I really didn't do in the first place :D) and it also made me realize that there are so many more awesome things than awkward.  Count your blessings y'all!

Wednesday To-Do Sepetmber 28, 2011

I won't rambe on with a lot of junk here, I don't think.  Today's to-do post is mainly just to keep me up to speed with what I need to-do.  Especially since I have two days off next week!

~3 black wallets for my Mother-in-Law
~Blue, green and brown wallet for my coworker
~5 Year Old sized Clemson Grayson Leigh hat for a custom order
~Alter the peasant dress (which may entail more work than I thought)
~Belt and bag to match peasant dress (I have some nice microsuede polyester for this!)
~While I'm talking about the dress, make a scarf from the scraps (Imagining that it will be really cute with a white long sleeve tee and denim skirt) and earrings from the selvage
~Make the "fur" lined coat--This has been put on the back burner.  It's not all that important that I get it done.  I have all winter to wear it.
~Make up bags
~Curling iron holders
~Gift card holders/wallets
~Make a scarf out of an old grimey t-shirt as inspired by The Crafty CPA's T-Shirt Recyling Ideas (this link leads to her blog post which links to a tutorial)--I'll probably do this tonight while watching Storage Wars with Hubs
~Maybe I'll make a bag to carry around Dollywood.  I don't know.  We'll see since I don't need a bag to carry around Dolllywood.  I already have a good store-bought one.  It's just good marketing to carry around something you made.
~I scored some awesome black and white plaid with a pink stripe at Hancock today.  60% off!  It had a little water damage (the building is old) but I think it will wash out and I want to make a hot little A-line skirt with it.  I have all winter to do this too. 

That looks like a lot.  And I suppose it is.  But it's a lot of little projects.  I think they are acheivable, especially since I got the duffle bag and the dress done and I decided to think about the coat later. 

Oh!  And Hubs and I are going on another date on Tuesday night.  I took advantage of Outback's million steak giveaway, but the catch was you had to use the voucher Monday through Thursday.  But that's what days off are for!

It's gonna be a good two days off!

You Know That Dress I've Been Talking About...

That plaid peasant dress that I first told you about in July...that dress that I've been dreaming about since before that...that dress that I've been putting off FOREVER...yeah, well, I finally finished it!

Well, I say I finished it.  It still needs a little work because it's floofier that I wanted it to be.  I pulled a lot of fabric around the back to make it look the way I wanted it to.  And I'm going to make a belt that matches a little better (and doesn't have the buckle turned around to the back so it matches).  The colors also came out a little wonky on this picture.  It's really khaki, navy and wine colored.   

I'll have better pictures later.  This one was taken while standing on the edge of the bathtub, because I don't have a full length mirror, at about 4:30 AM because I was crazy enough to stay up late to finish it.  I was just so excited to show y'all something that I can check off my to-do list!

It's petite friendly (of course it is, it's tailored to me!).  But I think the best part about this dress it that I fully lined it.  Sleeves and all.  The broadcloth that I bought for the lining is so soft and it makes it so warm!  I can't wait to wear it to the mountains with some leggings and my western-ish boots!

Linking up here!

I'm Warning You...

This might not be a fun post.  There probably won't be any pictures.  There won't be any tutorials.  This means no one will read it because most people only read blogs for pictures or tutorials.  I have a few exceptions. 

There will be a massive to-do list that I can't seem to get done.  And it's of no fault of my own.  I keep saying that I want my business to be successful, but I really don't know how I'd make it work if it was.  I hate sewing when I get off work (keep in mind, I get home at 11PM, not 6PM).  I feel like I should be spending that time with Hubs even though he's usually half dead.  I'm also tired and usually ill when I get off work, and when I'm tired, I make mistakes.  And that makes me more ill.  My last sewing project I tried after I got off work ended up being thrown across the room and a few various other things were kicked around the room.  And I was covered in velvet fuzz.  I still have a bad taste in my mouth from that. 

So...I don't sew after work.  I don't sew before work either because I can't ever finish anything. 

Anyway.  Here's my to-do list for this weekend and the next few weeks.
~5 wallets for various customers (3 black for my Mother-in-law, 1 purple and yellow for one of my middle schoolers, 1 blue brown and green for a friend at work)
~Make-up bags for the shop and potentially a wholesale order for a friend who owns a hair salon
~Curling Iron/Flat Iron covers for the hair salon
~Fold over flap bags
~Gift Card holders for Christmas
~Market Bags
~My Dress for the mountains
~Figure out wholesale costs for most everything in my shop

My plan is to design patterns and figure wholesale costs this evening at work.  Then tonight I'll draft out the patterns onto posterboard and cut fabric.  Then maybe I can plug and chug at the actual construction tomorrow. 

Sorry again for a boring post.  But I feel like I needed to get that off my chest.  I'm sure I'm forgetting something too.  I'll be the last to know.

You Know that Duffel Bag I Keep Talking About...

Well here it is. I finally got the motivation to finish it. Well, I got frustrated at another project and didn't have anywhere else to turn. I actually did want to have it finished before this weekend so I can take it to the beach with me. Hubs and I are going to Cherry Grove with our Sunday School class and found that it's easier to pack separate for little weekend trips like this. So it's finished. And I'm rather proud of it.   

As always, I know the picture is crappy, but it's 1AM, and I don't feel like waking Hubs up so he can take one of me in the cutesy clothes that you know I always wear in the beautiful daylight on our back porch. 

(The above was said because I don't ever wear cutesy clothes, Hubs and I never see each other, and come on, is it ever daylight in SC at 1AM?  I work at a hospital.  I wear scrubs.  Hubs and I really only sleep in the same bed.  I feel like when I start my new job we'll have to have another wedding ceremony because I sometimes I feel like I only see him as much as when we were dating.  That was a long bit to put in parentheses.)

Seriously though, I don't know how so many of you bloggers have such beautiful blogs and pictures.  If I had them, it would make my life a lie.

ANYWAY...

Onto the bag...

My Grand Idea was to put D rings on the top so you can hook various other matching bags to it with carabiners, clasps, whatever.  I always run out of room in the main part of my bag.  Therefore I am forced to put makeup and other things in Hubs's bag.  Not any more!  I also have plans to make a few other small bags to hook around the outside.

There's a nice little pleated pocket on both ends so I can cram any last minute things in there.

And it zips up with a molded plastic zipper.

Here's a better look at that makeup bag.  I might have to start selling these in my shop.  It's fully interfaced with fusible fleece like the duffel bag.  That should help to keep your makeup a little cooler in a hot car.  It's also lined with PUL so if anything leaks, I can just wipe it out.

The Grand Plan was to sell these Duffel Bag sets in my shop, but since it was a rather pain-in-the-butt to make, it doesn't look like that's going to happen.  Unless someone messages me and says they're willing to pay a butt load of money for it, in which case, I might oblige.  The makeup bag is definitely a keeper for the shop though.

Now...on to the beach so I can test this baby out! 

Linking up here!

Late Night Genius

Today, I am very tired.  Very...tired...  Ok, so there are probably more of you out there more tired than me, but my tail is dragging today.  I will be going to bed early tonight.  But I have good reason for it.  The reason I didn't go to bed until 4 AM this morning is because I was making this:

This is my flap top, clasp closure zebra zipper bag.  Excuse the crappy pictures on my sewing room floor.  I have been dreaming about this thing for the last 3 weeks and I finally just had to do it.  The design has shifted in all different directions.  The little extra elements have come and gone.  And yesterday evening at work, I finally drew it out and wrote out the steps and came up with what I wanted.  I'm just so excited, despite my level of tiredness, because it came out how I had dreamed!  In my eyes it's just gorgeous!  I know I'm blowing my own horn here, but this doesn't happen to me much!

I put a little flat zipper pocket on the back using this tutorial from Creating My Way to Success.  The zipper around the bottom isn't functional, for trim only, and I bent the heck out of a sewing machine needle on it.  Learned to do that part by turning the wheel by hand.  It's amazing what uses you can find for zippers when you have a whole hoard of them.  The strap is double interfaced with fusible fleece to give it some structure and padding.  This comes in handy when I throw my Daddy's copy of John Steinbeck's East of Eden in there.   

I took a picture of the inside, but I just noticed that my camera decided to focus in on my arm instead of the bag, and it looks quite crappy.  I'll redo that one for later.  But the inside is lined in white cotton, so I can find stuff in there.  The only closure to it is the clasp closure on the front, there's no zipper under the flap, but that's so I can just chunk stuff in there. 

This bag was a great learning experience, as well as a great new product for my Etsy shop!  And on top of all of this, I have something cute to carry around!

My Studio

I'm gonna jump on the bandwagon with all of these lovely crafty ladies who are posting pictures and writing about their studios.  I could sit all day and tell you about my studio.  How it's well organized, my decorating choices, the little things about it that inspire me, how Hubs helped me install custom lighting and build a table to suit my needs...

http://www.home-designing.com/2009/05/craft-room-home-studio-setup

http://www.younge.com/sewing_room_pages/photo_gallery.htm

http://www.hgtv.com/topics/sewing/index.html

But the fact of the matter is, that my "studio" looks like this:

See, so well organized.  I've got my sewing machine in one spot, and everything else everywhere else.  About my decorating choices, that boat on top of the 80s model TV, that's the Gorch Fock.  Whatever that is.  How could you not be inspired by looking athte Gorch Fock?  I actually did the custom lighting by myself.  I crawled under the Lifetime foldable table that Hubs really did set up and plugged in my old desk lamp from college.  I don't think Hubs would be happy that I posted this picture. 

This is the room that doubles as a "studio" and and office and in a few years will be a nursery because Hubs doesn't want to take down the guest bedroom to be a nursery.  So I don't want to buy furniture or permanent shelving that I will have to move soon enough.  It will also be a place where our middle schoolers from church meet in the fall, so something's gotta give.  There is minimal space in here.  The closet is even full of junk that has nothing to do with crafting.  I've got to move some stuff around, reorganize a bit and hopefully make it work.  Well, make it work better.  It works right now, just in a mess.  This is a project for this weekend.  I had hoped that a trip to the DG (Dollar General) would fix it, but I'm starting to think more along the lines of Wally World.  Hopefully I can do something so my studio doesn't get disassembled come September.  

I hope I've provided a look into what the life of a small time handcrafted business woman really looks like sometimes.  Maybe I've made some of you feel a little better about your messes.  I know the pictures of the pretty shiny studios make me feel guilty about mine.  I'll try to post some "after" pictures later with some helpful tips on a studio makeover for people on a budget with limited space.

Do you have pictures of your not-so-shiny studio that you would like to share?  Remember, there's safety in numbers!