I promised you all that I'd be doing a big shop update and I've been working hard at filling it up! I've gotten a whole bunch of goodies listed so go check it out!
And before you think that maybe I'm some kind of superwoman and made tons of bags in a ridiculously short amount of time, I must confess that these have all been either living in a big box here or at my parents' house for a while now. I attempted to list some of them months ago but needed to really develop my brand more before trying again. I think that I've really connected to a lot of awesome people and groups through the sewing/quilting communities and now am going to break out all my handmade goodies again. Not to mention, make some new ones. Check out this yummy bunch of fabrics, all decorator weight, just begging to be made into bags:Here's the deal: I'm so excited to finally be working in a job that allows me to use all my skills and knowledge from graduate school but am a little nervous about the transition (moving, full work days, etc.) sooo not only do I want to get this stuff out because 1) the warming weather is perfect for cotton bags and 2) I need all the space I can get (and have fewer boxes to pack!) but 3) I also need some serious funds for moving! So help support this little peacemaker and buy some awesome handmade goodies. :)
I have gotten such nice feedback after posting my latest quilts on Flickr. Thanks everyone! You're all so sweet. :) And all of those listed in yesterday's post are for sale in my shop so check it out if you've found one you're in love with.
Worked for most of the day. Now I'm home and enjoyed the lovely sunshine with Louie. Spring is definitely on its way - birds chirping, flowers popping up, not much bite left in the wind... If only we could fast forward to sandals/dresses weather.
I'm off to work on my quilt for Modern Relief Japan. Looks like there are going to be some gorgeous ones up to bid on - and for such a worthy cause.
Just wanted to pop in here and let you all know that I added a whole bunch more stuff to the shop this morning. I'll be adding more throughout the day and through the weekend (and will try to post after I do some big additions) so keep checking back.
It's gorgeous here - almost 70 degrees today - so Louie and I are heading to the dog park later for some much needed sunshine. Have a great weekend all!
Over the next few days, I'll be updating and adding to my Etsy shop. This will include new fabrics, bundles, quilts, and bags. Keep checking back through the weekend for some goodies.
I finished sewing together each row of my hexagons. I ended up with 190! The scary thing is that I have tons more. I'm not sure what will ever happen with them... Anyway, now that all the rows are ready, I can sew them together. I've already sewn 3 and 1/2 rows and have realized this will be pretty slow going. That's OK, I'm actually enjoying it more than I expected.
I also started a new embroidery project. I may or may not end up giving it to a friend for a present.
I spent the morning doing some job stuff and going through clothes (ended up adding a bunch of things to the sell/donate pile!). This afternoon, I started working on my Spicing Up The Kitchen swap projects. I'm going to make 2 hot pads and either a mug rug or some napkins. I'll post some pictures of my progress soon. My partner has very specific taste (which isn't a bad thing!) so I've been very cautious in planning and working on her items. I hope that she'll like them!
On a whole other note, I finished a long-standing WIP and am thinking of selling it. I love it but am thinking that I'd really like to try listing it in my Etsy shop. So far, I've only had baby quilts up, so this would be the first larger quilt I'd sell. It's about 50" square and is a perfect lap quilt. I spent a fair amount of time on it and it's made from only Kaffe Fassett fabrics so it's worth a lot. For those of you who sell larger quilts, how do you decide to price your quilts? To be perfectly candid, I already have a number in my head but I'd like to hear from you before I go ahead with it. If you don't feel comfortable posting your info, you can always email me at rlevenkron@gmail.com. I'd appreciate any information! (And yes, I'll post some more pictures soon!)
Well, off to do some more sewing, walk Louie, and get everything ready to make potato soup.
Phew, it feels good to keep cleaning! I went through my scrap bin (SCCARRYYY) and realized that I won't use basically more than half of what I had! Sooo....I decided to pay it forward (or at least, pay it back to me a bit - heehee!). I've created an Etsy listing in my shop that includes this huge bunch of scraps. I'll ship them in a USPS Large Flat Rate Box ($14.95) to the lucky buyer. This includes a whole slew of awesome designers, all usable pieces of fabric (nothing smaller than 2.5" square) and a number of cuts of hard-to-find prints (Katie Jump Rope, Liberty for Target, etc.). I tried to set what I thought to be a fair price and I'm hoping that someone will snatch this up, as these are all great pieces!!!
The fabric you see above is only the beginning of my major cleanout! In an effort to start fresh in 2011 I cleaned out my fabric cabinet and MAN did it need it! I have so much fabric that deserves a better home than I can offer so you're all in luck. I'm destashing over at my Etsy shop BUUUUUTTTTT I'm also willing to swap things but only if you have something really unusual rare. I don't want to just simply accumulate more fabric I won't use! The only things I'm looking for are Denyse Schmidt's "Flea Market Fancy" (I have NONE) and Anna Maria Horner's new velveteens from "Innocent Crush." Also, please keep in mind that I've tried to be reasonable about prices. If you REALLY, REALLY want something but the price isn't work, please shoot me an email and we can try to work something out. I'm reasonable, I promise! :)
So, check out my shop and KEEP CHECKING BACK as I'll be adding TONS - and I mean TONS - of fabric throughout the rest of the week.
I've been thinking about how to promote/spruce up my Etsy shop and was hoping that some of you readers had advice? Etsy itself has a wealth of information but I figure the more info I can get from people, the better.
Specifically, do you have tips about photographing your work? How about marketing/promoting? In terms of products, are there certain things - fabric arts related - that you feel are lacking on Etsy? What catches your eye?
I'm looking to really keep the shop full of quilts - including lap sized but I'm not sure how to financially get those going - as well as bags and maybe little goodies.
Wow, it's been quiet around here. Sorry about that. I haven't felt much like blogging lately. I've been dealing with a whole bunch of stuff and haven't really had time or much to write. I have, however, been crafting and have re-opened my Etsy shop. I have a bunch of unfinished projects that are calling to me and will be added to the shop soon. Keep checking back as I add more stuff, hopefully a little bit each week.
I hope that everyone had a great holiday weekend! We had a nice, relaxing few days here in NYC. It's been insanely hot (and it's still going...right now it's near 100!!!) so we didn't spend as much time outside as we would have liked (man, I wish I had a pool...). We did, however, venture down to check out the newly opened Brooklyn Bridge Park. Here are some shots from our spot on the lawn: All this hot weather keeps me inside doing crafty stuff. My mom bought me some sketching pencils and a pad. As I've been quilting more and more, I feel like I'd like to expand my own creative endeavors. I think it would be really fun to design my own logo, labels, etc. Will keep you posted!
I've been commissioned by a coworker to make her a quilt! She has a whole bunch of old tee shirts from her college sorority that she never wears but can't bear to part with, so she's been wanting to turn them into a quilt. When she heard that I make quilts, she asked me if I would make one for her - of course I agree and I'm thrilled! We've gone back and forth, coming up with a simple but really cute design. She has 12 shirts, which I'm going to sash using a really pretty striped fabric from Dena Design's "Monaco" line after cutting them into blocks. I'm going to back and bind the quilt with matching fabrics too. I'm so psyched to get started on this! In keeping up with Rossie's Process Pledge, I'll try to blog about this along the way.
General design of Erica's quilt. Not sure what size the blocks are going to be but I'm estimating that the whole quilt will probably be about 60" x 60" (she wanted a large lap quilt.)
For the sashing!
For the binding...
For the backing. Yum! She's from Florida - doesn't this remind you of beautiful ocean waters?
I purchased all the fabric for Erica's quilt from Fabric.com. Usually, I like to buy from small, independent businesses but I got all of this for a great price. Aaannnddd.....I snagged some of Jay McCarroll's hard-to-find "Woodland Wonderland" which I LOOOOVE! Check out what I got (for less than $4 per yard!):
And last but not least, I've been admiring this line recently and decided to get myself a yard of my fave print from it:
So as you can see, I'll keep myself busy for a while.
Only 37 days til our Maine vacation!
On another note, I've seriously considering relisting all my bags that didn't sell last summer in my Etsy shop. They're adorable and I wasn't really advertising much. I'm thinking now that I've been out in the virtual community, I should try again (but my ego is a little bruised!). What do you think? I'm also going to keep making new bags, quilts, etc. Thoughts? Suggestions? Hugs?
Stay cool, everyone!
Why compare yourself with others? No one in the entire world can do a better job of being you than you. – Unknown
I'm doing much better today. We all have up and down days. I think it's important to take note of both.
It's been a long week. I'm heading to work this afternoon, then having dinner with my new friend, Meredith. She and I bonded right away, during the first week of opening the store. She and I were wearing matching gray TOMS and were discussing Passover plans. I immediately knew she was someone I'd like to get to know as she hilariously explained that she always miscalculated the first night and ended up having her Seder on the 3rd night. I'm really looking forward to time with her outside the store.
The weather is finally warming up here again and hopefully will stay that way. Possibly into the 80s tomorrow! Ahh, so ready for summer!
I've been BUSY crafting this week, as you probably read. I'm determined to make more items for my Etsy shop. I've completed 3 1/2 baby quilt tops. I think I may have to buy some batting but should be able to get a couple of them quilted by next week. Keep a look out here, in my shop, and on Flickr...
Tomorrow I'm heading to the 2nd meeting of the New York City Metro Modern Quilters Guild! Since we're a new chapter, our meeting will mostly be brainstorming about what we'd like to do. Psyched to meet V and Amy, since I've been a reader of both of their blogs for a while now.
What are you weekend plans? Hope they're fun!
(Sorry for the lack of pictures recently. I promise some soon.)
What is it about baby quilts that are so gosh darn cute? Here you can see the two that I've completely finished (and will be for sale in my Etsy shop probably some time next week or the week after that...) as well as one more quilt top.
I woke up in a good mood this morning. I think mostly because it's Friday! My sweetie and I don't have any specific plans for the weekend but he doesn't have any work lined up so that's good. It's supposed to warm up here a bit which means a trip to the dog park is probably on the agenda (Louie is wagging his tail as we speak). What are your weekend plans?
I'm not sure how it got to be March already! That means we've been here in the Big Apple for over 3 months. It feels both way shorter and way longer than that (funny how that happens, huh?).
I may be going into work this evening (on call) so I don't want to make the day TOO busy. I do plan to do some crafting this afternoon.
In light of the economic times (ahem, my sad little bank account), I've been trying to be thrifty. I'm a total book-lover, the type who loves to OWN my books, but I've been so good lately and haven't bought anything in months. One of the many benefits of living in New York City is a fantastic public library system. This week I requested a whole bunch of books and they're slowly making their way to my local branch. Yesterday I got a copy of Sublime Stitching and after a quick trip to Michael's (embroidery has to be the cheapest hobby - spent only $5!) started to work on stitching. It's easy! I'm definitely going to keep this up and integrate into my quilts.
Speaking of quilts, I've been steadily making baby quilts to sell on Etsy. I know that there are many more experienced quilters out there but I like to think that I have good taste and a decent ability and people will want to buy my quilts! I'll post some pics later. So far I have two completed quilts, one quilt top, and one other top in the works (squares cut, ready to sew).
I've also decided to make my first quilt gift! I have a dear college friend getting married this summer...in Hawaii! Unfortunately, my sweetie and I won't be able to go - it's just too expensive - but we still wanted to give a meaningful wedding present. Will keep you updated on the progress (though maybe not too many details in case she reads this...)
And I still promise to post about my knitting. This week somehow got away from me.
Oh! And yay for a new month for quilting bees! Can't wait to get fabric in the mail!
Sorry I've been delinquent about blogging this week! I promise I will today or tomorrow. Hints at what's to come: knitting projects, baby quilts for sale, embroidery beginnings...
I woke up to a wonderful surprise: I sold this adorable bag from my Etsy shop! I've been a bad shop mommy, and have neglected my shop for a few weeks now. But that's only because I've been busy with other things. Not to mention, I've been stewing over new ideas for spring...
We didn't get much snow from this so-called storm that's pounding other parts of the East Coast. It's so funny - I move away from DC and they have one of the craziest winters! It's like I left my Upstate NY karma back in the District. Sorry guys!
My sweetie got saddled with another big project this weekend and had to head out to Queens today. I'm sad but we both knew that this first job would be like this. We deal with it because he's making decent money and it's only temporary. Still, we were looking forward to spending some time together this weekend! Hopefully he won't have to work tomorrow - too bad I will (but it's only for four hours).
So I'm going to be domestic today and cook and clean up a bit and of course do some sewing and knitting. Mmm, and I think cupcakes may be on the menu...
Oh, we did get some other wonderful news: our couch is FINALLY ready and will be delivered next Saturday, just in time for the Olympics. Yay! Ahh, can't wait! (It's the simple things, right?)
And before you think that maybe I'm some kind of superwoman and made tons of bags in a ridiculously short amount of time, I must confess that these have all been either living in a big box here or at my parents' house for a while now. I attempted to list some of them months ago but needed to really develop my brand more before trying again. I think that I've really connected to a lot of awesome people and groups through the sewing/quilting communities and now am going to break out all my handmade goodies again. Not to mention, make some new ones. Check out this yummy bunch of fabrics, all decorator weight, just begging to be made into bags:
Here's the deal: I'm so excited to finally be working in a job that allows me to use all my skills and knowledge from graduate school but am a little nervous about the transition (moving, full work days, etc.) sooo not only do I want to get this stuff out because 1) the warming weather is perfect for cotton bags and 2) I need all the space I can get (and have fewer boxes to pack!) but 3) I also need some serious funds for moving! So help support this little peacemaker and buy some awesome handmade goodies. :)
