"It's All About Me Me Me Me Me..."

Well, partially anyway.

This past Thursday I was featured on a wonderful blog for women entrepreneurs called More Than We Know.

(Click here to read!)

There are a lot of other great articles on there as well. Very inspirational.
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Contrary to what one might get from my interview there, these past few days I've been feeling a bit 'blah', not wanting to sew or do much of anything besides lie in the bed while playing with my hair and watching the squirrels do their thing outside the windows. (Oh, and take photos of the squirrels.)

Yesterday I took aaaaall my scraps out of the scrap bin and scattered them all over the room in color coordinated piles. The plan was to get started on some scrap dresses as mentioned previously.

I did manage to sew some pieces together.


The stitching came out kinda funky in places, and the fabric wasn't as flat and smooth as it should be. I knew this was all due to me really being unmotivated and doing something just to say I did something. For me that's a recipe for a shoddy outcome every time. This'll have to be redone. Soon all the scraps were put back, and I decided to wash and twist my hair instead.

My plan was to just take an extended break from making anything new in order to pull myself back together. You know. Just let the 'blahness' run its course. However, this morning I got the most *wonderful* message of positivity on etsy, and I've been moved to work on something today. So that's what I'm gonna do. :-D

It may be something small, but dangit, I'm creating today! Then I'll go hang out with Him a bit for some fun and silliness.

Have a great SUN-day everyone!

peace

A Lesson in Patience

Yesterday morning between 8:30 and 8:45 I heard a loud destructive noise, sorta like what a large object like a refrigerator might sound like if it were falling down a flight of stairs. Not until about 9:30 did I discover what it was. It had been raining, and apparently the very minimal amount of lightning that was going on hit this tree and snapped it in half. I live behind that house on the left, and that driveway is my only way in or out via car. Thankfully I had nowhere to go, cause I knew it would take a while to be removed.

Shortly after the tree incident the electricity went out.

Given the fact that I couldn't move my car, really had no place to go via foot, was without electricity, and needed a break from reading, I finally concluded that I should do some sewing by hand. Positioned in my bed near the bedroom windows while singing various tunes, I whipped up this lil' tote out of some scrap fabric and yarn that came from my stash:

(affixed to my blinds like that just cause I love that view.)

I was so pleased with my handiwork, I decided that a couple should be made for my manfriend's neices. With candle in hand, I managed to dig out some denim scraps from the stash in my dark closet without burning the place down. Some ribbon, paint, and snap closures were added to produce these:






I think they'll like 'em. :-)

Around 3 o'clock the power was restored and the tree had been mostly removed from the driveway.

You can see the guy who owns this apt. building (as well as the house in front) chopping and removing that tree all by himself. If anybody should get Landlord of the Year award, it's him. Whatever problem arises he's on it quick! Things get done even if he's the one who has to do it.

All in all my day was pretty peaceful. It was kind of bitter sweet once the power was restored. I knew I'd be compelled to get back to the usual. The hand sewing was fun, though. I'll have to do it more often.

This is What It's Come To

This past November made five years that I've had my beloved Brother sewing machine. In those five years, never have I had to change the light bulb. Not once. Well, last night when I flicked on the switch to finish up some thing I'd been working on, I got that quick flash, then nothing. You know how it does when a light bulb has run its course.

So the above picture was the scene this morning when I was finishing up the hem on a dress. At first I thought the light coming through the windows would be enough for me to see what I was doing. However, it's gloomy today, and after sewing for a minute or so, it hit me that I in fact wasn't sewing the edge of the hem. I was missing it completely and was just sewing on the skirt. The line was so straight, too, man! Alas, it was ripped out and redone with my trusty desk lamp in place.

In the process of ripping out and redoing, I had flashbacks to being in design class and being told on various occasions to rip out a sleeve/zipper/hem/seam and do it again. It wasn't flat enough...straight enough....close enough to the edge.....wide enough....thin enough....smooth enough.....IT JUST WASN'T GOOD ENOUGH!! ha ha! I've come a long way, y'all. :-)

I'll have to blog about my design school experiences soon.

(*Note: there must be a shortage or something, cause the sewing machine light will come on at times.)

Transitions

If you've been to my shop lately, then you've probably noticed a new section for skirts priced at $30 and under. Cute ones, too, such as this hot lil red number.


I was going through my scraps as mentioned in a previous post and realized that I have a lot of pretty large pieces that could be made into whole garments....as opposed to the patchwork pieces that I intend to make beginning sometime soon. I have no particular attachment or other use for these material pieces, (plus I really need to free up some of my space), so the whole $30 thing seemed like a good idea to me.

Although they're really simple, they're stylish AND of the same superb quality characteristic of all my garments. I know some people tend to equate low cost with low quality, but don't be fooled now. ;-).

So yeah, transitions. I'm trying to figure out where I'm gonna go with my 'flytie' etsy shop. A more uniform look has been heavy on my mind lately. I enjoy making garments of various styles and textures. It's just that online clothing shopping is sorta tricky for some folk, and it may be more beneficial for me to create a line of garments where it wouldn't be difficult for potential buyers to determine whether their purchases will fit them correctly once the garments arrive.

I've got a few ideas in mind, but I can't reveal all my plans, ha ha! :-)

It was really the shop of Treehouse28 that got me thinking about this some months ago. Her work is really nice....and consistent. Plus I just admire her in general (so you can image how thrilled I was to receive a very positive message from her on day ) :-D

I notice that a lot of the clothing designers who have consistent sales on etsy have a certain look. I don't feel that I have that. I'm sorta all over the place...mostly letting the fabric determine what the garment will be. This is just something I've been thinking of, cause shoot..I wanna have 3 + sales a day too, instead of...maybe....3 a month. Although this month has been straight so far between my two shops. :-)

Now, I'll still do all the different styles and things for the boutiques where I sell locally, since folk can try them on and determine whether or not they'll work. Online just may become something else, though.

Only a few things I'm thinking of...may or may not happen ;-)

peace

"Just Bees and Thangs and Flowers."

Y'all may have seen the message in the announcement section of my 'sewfly' etsy shop that goes something like this:

***NOTE: I am in the process of slowly phasing out 'sewfly'. As a result you'll find that most items in this shop have been reduced by 50%. Those garments that have not been reduced *will not* be reduced. If they have not sold by the time I decide 'sewfly' is officially done, I'll either keep them for myself or give them to friends and family. :-D***


O.k., well, I've rethought this and have decided to keep it open.

I really enjoy creating wearable art such as the pieces displayed in that shop. I had decided to shut it down, though cause...well, I'm not exactly certain why. Something about wanting to focus more on my other shop...not wanting to have 2 'brands'....not wanting to mix in the colorful pieces with the others....basically just a whole bunch of reasons that at the end of the day are insufficient.

Plus people who appreciate what I do in that shop have shown objection to it shutting down. :-) I appreciate the love, y'all.

Bright colors, painting, pretty things, stenciling...I have so much of that in me, and the clothes serve as my canvas. I wanna keep 'sewfly' as an outlet to share that with others. It's funny cause my own wardrobe consists mainly of various shades of browns and greens. I'm not likely to wear the majority of the pieces that I create for that shop. Still, it's all so very fun, and quite honestly, I think that shop is a better fit for etsy than my other.

Now the items that are there on clearance will remain until they sell or expire. At this point everything has been reduced. Time for some freshness. Sometime this week I'll start uploading newly created pieces. Want a sneak peek???




Yeah, that's all you get, ha ha! It should be up soon...

Peace