Drum roll please

Yay! The baby quilts are now in my Etsy shop. I took advantage of the free time and sunshine and FINALLY put them there.

Now start buyin' people. :) Heehee.

She's on a roll!

...and another bag sold! Woohoo!!!!!!!!!!!

....and she's off!

After putting up new items, I had 2 orders! One person bought a new, awesome style and another made a request for a custom order.

Here's the new bag that sold!

Yayayayayayayayay!!!!!

Keep those orders comin' people. :-)

New items!

Yay! I'm making major progress on my fall items. Below is a preview (and a picture of my some of my leftover fabric) of some items that will be available soon in the shop. The third photograph features my first bag of original design - woohoo!

What a process

I'm guessing that for those of you who don't sew, you aren't fully aware of the the entire process, start of finish of how I make bags. I thought I'd enlighten you today!

First and foremost, choosing fabric is no small feat. Personally (as you can see from my shop) I lean toward bold, modern fabrics or fabrics with ethnic flair. Most bags that I make require about 2 yards of fabric total, which isn't very much. Other items needed to actually make the bags are magnetic snaps and lobster hooks (purchased from suppliers, usually on Etsy), interfacing to line the fabric (from a fabric store, usually Joann Fabrics) as well as coordinating thread. Then I have to choose a pattern. I'm currently in the beginning stages of designing my own bags! Right now, I use patterns that allow me to sell the finished products (usually crediting the author) and am working on designing my own, stemming from all that I've learned from the patterns I've already used. Then I have to wash, dry and iron the fabric. This is actually a nice part - there is something wonderful about simply handling the fabric! Then it's time to place the pattern, pin, and cut. I must do the same for the interfacing. Then, since I used fusible interfacing, I iron the coordinating pieces to the fabric cuts and voila! Ready to sew. As you can see, most of the work that goes into making a bag is actually prep work. The actual sewing doesn't take too long! While I sew, I like to listen to NPR or music, though lately I've been sewing in silence. I've found it's a wonderful, calming time. I'm INCREDIBLY fortunate to have a whole separate room in my house that's just for sewing and other crafts. It really makes the exercise of going to sew and meditation/escape. The room colored in a warm, soothing brown, which a couch and a window air conditioner to keep it cool.

Once the bags are done, it's time for pictures for Etsy. Stay tuned - LOTS of new items will be appearing in my shop over the holiday weekend.

Hope you enjoyed today's lesson. :-)

Fall fabrics

I think this may have been the shortest summer ever. We've had TERRIBLE weather here in the Northeast and while fall is definitely my favorite season, I'm not quite ready for it to arrive yet. I still have a closet full of cute sundresses that have barely been worn?

I will always think of fall as symbolizing beginnings. Things have been slow in my shop so I'm going to put a lot of the summer stuff on sale and am currently hard at work on the fall stuff. Here are some of the fabrics that I plan on using for fall bags!

First sale!

I had my first sale in Little Olive Branch! Woohoo! A friend from high school bought my favorite bag in the shop, which she said she'll be giving to her maid of honor as a thank you present. What a great idea!

In other news, a fellow Etsian contacted me about selling my bags in a new boutique she'll be opening that features handmade goods. I'm so honored. :)

I recently bought some new patterns (on Etsy, of course) and am gearing up to make some cute new fall bags. I also purchased some new, fall-themed fabric (darker colors) and am really excited to get sewing. Unfortunately, our dryer is broken at the moment so I'll have to wait... All the fabric needs to be washed and dried first. Fortunately, the repair man is coming today so hopefully I'll be able to start tonight! I'm also working on some cute headbands, wall hangings, and small pouches.

FINALLY!

I did it - the shop is officially open! Go take a look at Little Olive Branch.