Pandora's Box

More and more of my old friends are joining Facebook, I love catching up with them but the one thing I'm not too keen on is all the free 'tests' that get passed about like 'Find your true name' all geared to revealing your true personality, which either leaves you elated or deflated.

This morning I have been lining some handbags and tea cosies. Standard kit required: sewing machine, scissors and sewing box.

So here is my Personality Test - What does your sewing box say about you?

. To start with my box is actually a tool box, lots of handy compartments to keep me organised.
. The picture above is a small selection of the more bizarre things I keep in my box:
. Thread colours - I have no idea what I have used some of those colours for over the years. The bright orange was for a holiday dress I hand sewed, which would no doubt look more like a hankie now. The green thread was for a new cover I made for the sofa that was left in my first flat in Edinburgh. The other colours - well?!
. Spare light bulbs for my Disco Ball
. A plectrum - one day I will strum away again on my guitars...
. An odd earring from a pair I used to wear constantly - probably now about 20 years old.
. Little ruby beads that I tied into my hair for my wedding reception.
. An eraser shield, for precisely correcting all the little mistakes I made when drafting architectural drawings by hand - again nearing 20 years old.

Make up your own mind what my personality is like. My sewing box is an every day time capsule of my past. Every time I use it the little things inside make me smile.

What's in your box?

SALE

SALE

Just a wee note to say I have put a few one-off handbags on sale on my web site and Etsy - click the links on the right for more details and keep popping back as I sort out more sale stock - time for a clear out!

Work In Progress

I've always wanted to type 'WIP'. It took me a while to work out what it stood for. Above is a picture of my WIP - this weeks activity, sewing handbags ready for felting. They look a bit saggy around the edges, that's why I love felting them, it takes them one step closer to the quality that I strive to achieve with every item I make.

It's also good to see the bags as a 'collection'. I think the colours work well together and hopefully there is a style that will suit most tastes.

When I knitted as a hobby I would experiment with different styles and colour combinations, (you can see this on my gallery page on my website) making every bag different. However I think having too many styles and colours would be confusing for a buyer, especially if I want my CL stand to have a bit of an impact. Less is definitely more.

A neighbour had mentioned seeing a shop window in Glasgow last week where they only displayed one handbag in the window. I cant afford to have just one item on show at CL, but hopefully reducing the colours I use to a limited pallet will create a more refined image. I also like the idea of having a collection, sounds very professional!

I'm increasingly realising that making lots of different things in the hope that one of the items will be a hit isn't the way to go. I'm much happier making styles that I know are well received and ensure that I am making them to the highest quality I can.

Practice makes perfect!

(incidentally WIP is also Women In Property - a networking forum for women in property and construction, from my previous life as an architect)

Muddy boots and Photographs

The past few days have been really productive. I've changed my way of making things - rather than making 10 of this or that to completion I am going to get as much stock knitted as possible over the next three weeks, then I'll do all the sewing and finishing in October which leaves me November to get organised for the CL Fair.

It means I will quickly have a better idea of how much stock I will have for Christmas, and although it can be repetitive at times (69 sheep in 2 days!) at least I know the main part of the production is done.


I also finally managed to get some photos of new bags modeled by my friend Kirsty. We got some funny looks this morning as we climbed over the fence to go into the field (just outside Killearn), especially as I had a huge blue bag with all my stock in it. It's been a miserable rainy week, this morning wasn't particularly bright but at least it was dry. We also had to share our location with a few nosy bovines.


I think they turned out fine - if a little dark, but it certainly gives you a better idea of the size of the bags. I also like how they contrast with the landscape.


This weekend will be spent knitting as we are off to Oxford next week to visit relatives and to take our boy to Legoland - plenty of sewing in the car for me!

Wee Green Market and my Weekend

The Wee Green Market in Killearn was a success yesterday. The hall was full with exhibitors and there was certainly more people through the door than the previous couple of months. People are more relaxed when its busy as the odd visitor on a quiet day can feel the pressure of being the lone customer.

I bought myself a needle holder made by Suzanne. I often look at lovely things and never buy them because I always think - 'I can make something like that' - of course I never do, so it's little treats like the holder that put a smile on my face.

I was also heartened to know that a couple of the exhibitors at the market, Jane and Karon, will be exhibiting at the Country Living Christmas Fair in November. A few familiar faces will make the process slightly easier for me.

After the market it was off to buy some essentials, and I managed to pick up these mugs from Woolworths of all places for £1 each - what a bargain.

I also received lots of compliments regarding a couple of new bags which I'm due to put on my web site soon. They are slightly larger than I normally make and the flower has a pin on the back so you can wear it as a brooch.

Today has been spent pondering about my stand at CL, picking plums from the garden and freezing them (in 1lb batches - I'm so organised!) for future chutney making - that's Christmas sorted!

I'm off to work out how many bunnies I can make in a week - answers on poatcards please!

If it wisnae fir yir wellies....

It's been a busy week making tea cosies/ egg cosies and handbags. Everything is felted so look out for lots of new pics soon - especially my new sheep tea cosy. Next week will be dedicated to finishing off everything I have made over the past few weeks. I'll put some stock away for the Country Living Fair, the rest I will be selling at the Wee Green Market in Killearn next month.

I'm also thinking of including a 'preview' section on my web site for my Christmas stock, I might leave this till nearer October though.

The benefit of working at home came into its own yesterday when I was struck with a dreaded migraine. Instead of feeling like my eyeballs were going to fall out as I screwed them up in pain trying to do some drawings on AutoCAD (in my previous life as an architect) I was able to pop up to bed for a mid afternoon siesta whilst my boy was at nursery, and it did the trick.

I'm also getting ready to go to RetroFest with my sis and friend Julie, this time next week. We are camping from Friday to Sunday at the 2nd 80's music festival being held at Strathclyde Country Park, featuring stars such as The Bangles, Boy George, Paul Young, not forgetting BoneyM! Our biggest dilemma is whether to take stuffed olives or not. How life has changed, 10 years ago we would have just been packing booze (and a few pair of clean pants!)

Anyway if its a nice day tomorrow we will take our bikes up to Loch Katrine for a few hours.

I'm off to find my wellies, perfect festival dancing footwear!