it’s been a while since i’ve posted anything, and i have tons of stuff to catch up on in my etsy shop, but for now, i’ll leave you with a few vacation pics! (which sadly, was nearly a month ago!!)
just wanted to give everyone a heads up that i will be on vacation from May 22-May 31. my shop will remain open, however orders placed during this time will not be sent out until June 1, 2010. thanks for your understanding!
with teacher appreciation month and the school year coming to a close, i was asked to think of some cute ideas for my niece and nephews teachers.
i recently came across these two new blogs that i have REALLY come to love! both had this Smores Appreciation gift on their sites, and i knew instantly that i wanted to make them! (if i had more time i would have loved to have made these pretzel crayons! i mean, really- HOW CLEVER!) this is a really quick and easy gift for a teacher because the printout has already been designed (and it’s free!) so all you need are the ingredients!
since this is also my nephews last year of preschool (oh.my.gosh! he’s starting kindergarten in the fall?!) my sister wanted to do a little something for all the teachers in his class. since there are quite a few, we decided on some reusable coffee cozies. these are really quick to whip up, and since i have so many scraps, each was a completely different design. we put them on a disposable coffee cup, then put a Starbuck’s giftcard inside, and i even stuck a wooden stirrer in the lid, with the teacher’s name on it.
both these gifts are great especially if you have a little one with multiple teachers! buying gifts for more than one teacher can get costly, especially in this economy! they’re both affordable, and the teachers will also love the originality!
a few weeks back one of the local communities held a 100 Family yard sale. i haven’t been to a yard sale in years, but every time i see someone post something about their yard sale finds, i keep telling myself that i need to start going on Saturday mornings! i really only had a few ideas in mind as to what i wanted- some old furniture that i could redo and ultimately turn into cool storage spaces in the spare bedrooms, a coat rack (i have one i got from Target that i store all my bags on and it’s definitely overflowing!) and an old wooden dollhouse.
why a dollhouse? have you seen this site. i really love it. everything is just so cute and whimsical. have you seen her studio? ahh, that would be my dream. a tiny little cottage studio where i can just sew away! that would truly be darling. here’s the inside. i love the way the fabric is stored, and then to have more fabric in the dollhouse! really, it just takes my breath away, it’s so darn cute and perfect!
anyways…i didn’t find any of the things i’d hope to find. i did come across a lady selling a Babylock overlocker. i didn’t know much about overlockers, and i wasn’t sure if it was the same thing as a serger (and i’ve actually thought about getting a serger, thought i’ve been hesitant because the whole machine just looks busy and complicated). she wanted $50 for the machine, and i thought long and hard about it. the machine was originally over $200, but it was an older machine and i worried about the condition it was in, and really $50 is a bit to spend at a yard sale right? so, i didn’t get it. then…i got home and did some research on the machine, and kicked myself for not getting it because, duh, an overlocker IS the same as a serger, and the cheapest i’ve seen a new one is around $200, and from what i heard at the repair shop i go to, Babylocks are pretty good machines. why i didn’t google it on my phone while i was at the yard sale is beyond me! ahhhh…live and learn! i just keep telling myself that because it was an older machine i’d probably spend at least $100 on getting in maintenanced, so at that point spending $200 on a brand new machine would be more worth it! but boy, it would’ve been fun to add a vintage machine to my collection huh?!
i tell you what, if i DID have a serger, i’d be able to make more of these!
since the whirl of baby showers and births have started i’ve added a few more items to the shop!
one of my best sellers has always been items made from Sandi Henderson’s Dahlia fabric (this may be the last item i have listed for a while since i’ve finally used up most of the fabric i have…time to order some more!)
this set includes a chenille bib (with pearly snap closure), and two fabric decorated burp cloths (one in pink and one in white). i decided to add some ribbon tags on the burp cloths because i had some requests for them to be made that way (some parents like to be able to add those plastic infant toy links to them so they can just clip them to their diaper bag or stroller allowing easy access…if this is something you’d like to see more of, please let me know!) the set also comes tucked inside a cute “paint tin” that is clear but has colorful butterflies on it. the colorfulness of the set just screams spring to me, so i think it’s perfect for all the babies that are about to bloom! and with it being in the tin, it’s ready to give if you are looking for a baby shower gift!
i also added another nursing apron since the last one in my shop sold! this apron is made with fabric from Moda called Birdie (part of the Me & My Sisters collection). the aqua and pink remind me so much of Sandi Henderson’s Dahlia collection, but it also has birds on it- my fav!
and last, since i do get quite a few orders on hair clips, i decided it’d probably be best if i did include some smaller sets in the shop. i have a couple more sets that will be listed in the next few days, but for now i have a Pretty In Pink set.
my goal for the year was to do at least one craft fair. thanks to my cousin who works at Freddie Mac, i accomplished that goal last week! they do a Marketplace/Craft Fair twice a year, so i was able to participate in their Spring Fair.
i really didn’t know what to expect going in. i had tons of inventory still leftover from my holiday purse party so there wasn’t too much prep work involved (which was really nice, because usually i am sewing for two months straight when planning for a purse party!) i filled up two bins, made a cute banner (courtesy of Vista Print), ordered some new business cards, and called it good! i really didn’t think too much about it- since it was a work fair, i figured traffic would probably be fairly light, but somewhat decent (it was only open to employees in the office building), and since it wasn’t really a holiday season i didn’t expect to sell to much and set my goal somewhat low. i exceeded my goal but i left feeling like i could have done so much more if i had been better prepared!
it was nice to get my feet wet with this first craft fair because it was such a huge learning experience! i really felt like an amateur when i got there because i had two huge bins that i lugged from the parking garage, and seeing all the other vendors roll on by with their wheeled luggage or bins made me feel like a chump! add to the fact that my display was BORING and way too cluttered! i don’t know what i was thinking by putting everything i brought out on the tables! i guess i figured if i gave people lots of options they’d like that more? plus the fact that i had so many different styles of bags that i couldn’t decide which ones to actually showcase more! next time i’m going to remember to bring some nice baskets and other decorative storage to use as displays!
the table next to me was another vendor who specialized in children’s gifts as well. it was so great meeting someone who had shared interests, and we chatted it up a bit about our products-we both learned so much from each other! meeting Muffy (from Marlie and Hank) was a huge eye opener! she really encouraged me that i could be doing more with my products, (her items are sold in a local boutique), and if you suggested that a year ago, i would have balked at the idea- mainly because i didn’t think anyone would ever buy my product outside of custom orders or purse parties! the idea of selling my items in a boutique always appealed to me, but it just seemed very out of reach. after talking with Muffy, i realize that this is something totally doable and that is going to be my new goal! i’ve decided that it’s time to get serious and start believing in myself! right now my Etsy shop is closed for inventory, but i think now is as good of a time as ever to try and revamp Crafty Natalie! i’m going to focus more on all of my top-selling items: diaper bags, baby accessories (burp cloths-both chenille and fabric cloths, and bibs), play mats and baby blankets, and of course my children’s crayon tote bags and crayon rolls! i’m also going to continue with my MacBook laptop sleeves, and i’d like to work on a few purse patterns that are truly my own as well! eventually if i ever do get into a boutique i’d like to re-brand so i have a better name to work with!
honestly, the craft fair was the kick in the butt that i needed! i’ve always been encouraged by friends and family to do MORE with Crafty Natalie, but i’ve always been too scared! seeing someone who had very similar products as mine AND had their items sold in an actual store really opened my eyes to the fact that this is definitely a goal that i can reach!!
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