Do's & Don'ts

Been a long. busy week here! I've probably made 35 things this week. Some of them that involved new patterns and fabric shopping trips as well!

Learned some things. On with this week's Do's & Don'ts. I apologize for #1, it's kinda gross, but not too bad ;)

#1. DON'T shut your finger in the car door after buckling in your kid at a gas station that didn't have regular gas, the candy we wanted, or the slushies pictured on the sign outside. Luckily they did have napkins because this thing bled horror-movie style. This pic is day 2, took off the bandage, cleaned it up, and was surprised it looked as good as it did considering how bad it felt. Loss of the nail is still questionable. I can only imagine my wide-eyed "shit shit shit!" look I had when I went in for napkins. Dr. Dave hooked me up with a band-aid clearly marked non-sterile from a field kit. Niiiiice.

I want to take a photography class. Look at that pretty faded background, and that nice clear forefront. How did I do it? I don't know. My most professional looking picture I've ever taken has got to be of my crusty digit.

#2. DO make awesome market tote style bags with awesome potato and pepper fabrics in the middle of the night, hours before the baby shower you're making it for.
#2a. DO get shown up by a Grandma's absolutely amazing and huge quilt with coordinating quilted storage bag. Way to go Grandma Awesome Quilt! I wish I'd gotten a picture of it!

#3. DO talk about other people's business. Haha! I mentioned to my MIL that my dear friend CeeJay is pregnant and decorating the nursery in a veggie theme, and what-do-ya-know, she had these really neat cross-stitched veggie pictures that my Step-FIL's Mom made. She'd been trying to pawn them off on the other kids a long time ago, but apparently they were meant to belong to my friend. She loved them!

#4. DO work even farther into the night making yet another cool scrunchy front pouch. Of course I had to embroider it, it is my new obsession. And if you're going by the name CeeJay, I'm sure you're finding nothing personalized. After a day of presents all for baby, it's nice to get an all-for-you gift.

#5. DO tell your crafty friends your plans for decorating. If said crafty friend is anything like me, you've just inspired her. I'm so proud of these! A crocheted eggplant, carrot, avocado, radish, broccoli, and an ear of corn that really comes out of the husk! They were a big hit. Grandma Awesome Quilt thought they were genius which was flattering.

The baby shower was a great time! I won a big tomato plant in the nursery rhyme game! I planted it in a really classy looking white five gallon bucket. (Riiiiight.) This baby will be very loved :) I can't wait to meet him! I hope he eats veggies after all this too...

Only one Don't this week... not bad D, not bad...





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Decisions To Make...

Can I just say, I hate taxes! Well tax season anyway. Again this year I decided to be organized by throwing every receipt for every fabric I bought and ever P.O. trip I took into a box marked 2009. Yup that's it. Hundreds of receipts in a box. Then every year in January I sort them out by store and date and get started on really organizing that mess. Last year I cried. I figured out how much money I made and then how much I spent. How much I spent far exceeded how much I made. I did impressively better this year. I'm ashamed to say I have nothing to show for it but pride from people all over the world buying my items. Didn't save any of it that's for sure! What'd I buy with my earnings? Fabric. Some more fabric. Some notions. Fabric. Even more fabric. Some more fabric. Probably some clothes too. And a hell of a lot of toys. Might have paid a bill or two.

So now I'm stuck wondering if I should keep this up. I'm making money. I'm selling my things and that's awesome. But when I consider the amount of time I spend online to make this money, it's ridiculous. I probably make 10 cents an hour. I love selling my wares. I love designing, sewing, selling, packaging, shipping my wares. I don't like wasting my time. I also don't want to end up on Hoarders with this fabric obsession.

So we'll see what happens... I can't just make a decision on this quite yet...

I've made some great things for friends of mine lately. I've been so busy with Christmas gifts that I really haven't added much to my shop in the past few weeks. Here are a few of them:

A yellow submarine pillow for my Beatles fanatic friend Kristin. Technically this isn't a Christmas gift since we agreed not to do gifts and I haven't given it to her yet. It's a we're-all-friends-in-a-yellow-submarine-no-matter-how-damn-busy-we-are gift. Soft, fleecy, and awesome, with a zipper for easy laundering.

This one isn't technically a gift either since I already spoiled my Ali-cat this year. She got a peek at some of the larger quilts I've been making and asked me oh-so-sweetly for a quilt for her baby doll. Easy enough, I think it took me 20 min. tops. The smile on her face was so worth it.

And here's my goober testing out the quilt and pillow. He kept telling me "Mom, you made this quilt too small, it won't even cover my butt!"


My first ever teacher gifts! Ms. S and Ms. T got matching fabric baskets (made using a slightly modified version of this pattern from Pink Penguin. So very easy and turns out so nice! Try it! David chose magnets, pocket mirrors, and candle holders to go inside. Then he wrote his name on the tags. My boy is getting so big. His teachers are so wonderful, I wish we could've done more for them! But hey, I pay em for that right? :)

One of the table runners I made. This one went to my Grandma. I made another for my boss as well but never got a picture of it. I have one in the works for my stepmom-in-law too, just haven't had a chance- or the motivation- to finish it quite yet.

These are all fine and dandy, but check THESE out!


My Mommers made them! She is beyond awesome. This is my Mom's diet plan. Instead of eating, she is making fake food. How that keeps her mind off food is beyond me, but it's working, and I've always known she's weird. Just looking at it makes me want some mashed potatoes and a PopTart. Love you Mom!

What To Do...

Ok. I don't know what to do with these. I make hats every winter. I thought I was quick... but upon discussing crochet with my friend Becky from wanderlust*creations who crochets about 6,768,234 times faster than I do, I realized I'm sloooow. It hurts me to sell a hat for a mere $20 when I know how long it took me. Not that I ever sold one. So when they expired, aside from the Etsy Front Pagers, I didn't relist them. Now that it's getting colder I'm wondering what to do with them.

--give them to friends?

--have a giveaway?

--relist them on Etsy?

--start wearing a hell of a lot more hats?

--who the hell knows?

It's easier to give away a hat to someone I like than to only charge $20. Does that make any sense?

Recently I made a Facebook post saying that I was in a baby stuff making mood and if any of my friends were pregnant and I forgot/didn't yet know then they'd better tell me if they want cool stuff. Only one of my friends was ballsy enough to say "Hey my wife is pregnant, what do we get?" Happens to be my first high school boyfriend too - haha! If you want my stuff you've got to tell me. He's getting something awesome. My memory is shit and I need this all grouped into one memorable corner of my mind.

So far on my Knocked-Up List is: my best friend Megan, my ex-boyfriend Jessy, my cousin Kathy, my childhood best friend Michelle, and dang it... someone I've forgotten. That will now bother me all night.

From hats to this... how does that happen? What do I do with these hats?? Give them to the first gutsy people that scream at me "I WANT A HAT!! GIMME ONE!!"? I love them but I don't want them throwing off the feeling of my shop as it is now. Crocheted hats just seem kind of random in there. Am I being wayyy too picky?