Starting an Online Shop, etc

Okay, so I figure maybe with my sewing buddies out there and friends and family that follow, someone can help me think of something.

Let me start back, so I've mentioned on here previously that I was starting at a Mother's Day Out; well last week was my first week and I'm almost through my second week. Well, first let me just say I love it! Madi gets to play with other kids her age and different toys than the ones she is used to at home! I get to play with other kids slightly younger than Madi and make money doing it. :) Of course this week I'm fighting a cold so it's making it hard to fully enjoy! So, to my point, starting at the MDO has possibly opened the door to one of my dreams; as I came in and signed in last Thursday the director commented on my purse (the zebra one in the previous post) and I told her I made it, she was amazed and the bag I carry for Madi is a corduroy tote I made using this tutorial. So, as we got to talking about it, they mentioned they have a carnival at the end of April and I should totally make something to be auctioned off. Of course one of my first thoughts, was, 'why didn't I think of this sooner?!' I work with kids who constantly use diaper bags, bibs, burp cloths, etc which are some of the things I've been thinking of making if I were to ever open an Etsy store. So, today she mentions next week we are having a meeting about the carnival. So, I was talking to her about what exactly I need to plan for. I will pretty much make one item to auction off at a silent auction and give them a value on that item and they'll start the bid slightly lower and we'll go from there. I have not actually verified if I will directly make the money off of that, but honestly if I make something really great and have a website for them to go to and thus bring in business, I don't care. :) I don't mind giving gifts to bring a customer base and start a business!

So, here is my main reason for this particular post, I am ultimately planning to open an Etsy shop by the end of this month. I haven't decided what I will auction off and I'm not entirely sure what I will start off with in the shop, most importanly I have no idea what I might want to call the shop! That's where you come in! I need your thoughts and ideas of what to call my shop and maybe some things you think might go well in it! My initial idea is to auction off a diaper bag in nuetral colors of course, but I was also thinking of adding a few coordinating burp cloths and bibs maybe even a ribbon blanket or tag blanket whatever they're called. I also am currently in the works of making a catalog bag for my family members that sell Scentsy and of course have made one for my Mark. stuff as well! So, I'm thinking of maybe once I have my complete pattern for those bags in order selling those as well. I also can't decide if I want to make a full diaper bag or a tote bag of some sort to accomodate all the age groups? I also thought it was interesting that when my director saw my zebra purse she said it would make a cute dance bag for the older girls. I do like that idea but not sure I want to make that for the auction because I want something that will gear towards anyone!

So, please let me know your thoughts, ideas and suggestions! I greatly appreciate them! Everyone who gets this in my email are some of my core group, so I hope you will let me know what you think! Also, if you do get this in your email make sure to check the actual blog to see other comments to see if it inspires you, etc. Thank you all for reading this and in advance for your comments and ideas!

Ashley :)

Sewing!!

Well, last night was our March Friday Night Sew In and I really didn't know if I was going to get to do very much because we had to take care of my parents dogs for a bit, do laundry and get Madison to sleep! But finally around 11pm or so I set out to get some of my sewing done. I didn't think too much on what I was going to do, like I usually do and just decided to finish my best friend Terri's diaper bag since her baby shower is next weekend! I also worked on the burp cloths and bibs! I am so excited they are done! Unfortunately for you guys, you don't get to see full pictures because Terri gets to be one of the first people to see it besides me! :) I did take pictures to see that something is sewn together but you can't see the 'big' picture! :)

Aside from the sew in I recently bought a pattern that I'd been wanting to get for a while, picked a bag from the 4 patterns and got the fabric and put it all together! The fabric isn't something I would typically get, it's more my sister's style but I liked it and went for it and love it! I'll have to make something for my sister with this fabric! :)

Well, when I went to get the fabric for that bag, I had my nieces with me and let them pick out some things while we were there and my older niece who has been interested in sewing picked a cross stitch kit! Needless to say I did a lot of it for her but she did most of it, she is actually still working on it, though! Well, this was all before spring break and seeing that I watch them after school everyday, I also watched them a couple of days during spring break and they both wanted to work on some type of stitching/cross stitch things, so 'Grammy' went to the store and picked up some kits and cloth for cross stitch and some books of patterns. In the process of showing my older niece how to cross stitch I really wanted to dive back into it! So with one of the new kits my mother had bought for them, I found some of my embroider thread, cut off some of the cloth and followed the pattern from one of the kits! I didn't stitch it quite like the kit calls for, but I love how it turned out and I know, now my niece is excited to do her version of it! :)

Well, to top it off, last weekend I went to a Scentsy party for my cousin and she mentioned she wants me to make her a catalog tote for her and today I was looking at pictures of some on Etsy! I had been thinking on it all week trying to figure out exactly how I'm going to do it. After looking at pictures and things I'm really exctied to do it! It also helps that I am now a Mark. rep, so I will make one for me as well! I definitely don't see a lot of people marketing these, so I think I have something here! I'm very excited about it! I will keep you posted on how that goes!

I had actually also planned on working on some reusable snack bags and maybe some reusable shopping bags, but that didn't play out with time, etc! I am eager to get these going, though because everytime we end up with plastic bags I just cringe! I've been saving them b/c I DO NOT want to throw them away! I have found things online of how you can turn them into reusable shopping bags, so I may do that to make use of them! I may also have to invest in a giant tub to recycle everything I can! I don't like throwing plastic away anymore! We've got to make this a better place for our kids and their kids and grandkids! We can only make it better; every little bit helps! I also love the incentive CVS now has that you get money back for using reusable shopping bags! I think everyone should start doing that to help us to remember to use them and also get more people to use them! Also, you should definitely check out the Green Bag Lady's website sometime I keep the bag I won from her in my purse so that I can use it when I'm out! Sorry, I didn't mean to get on my soap box there, but it's been bugging me lately and I think it should bug more people so we can clean this earth!

Take care and stay warm today in Oklahoma! First day of spring and it's snowing! Go figure! :)

So, that is all I have for now, take care!

Ashley

Friday Night Sew In and more.....

The Friday Night Sew In is on again for Friday the 19th; I have yet to decide what specifically I will be working on, but you will all know and see soon! :) I have worked on a couple of things here lately, and started on Terri's diaper bag, so I have plenty to keep me busy that night, just need to figure out exactly what! :)

Also, for those who haven't seen or heard, I am now a Mark. rep and am very thrilled to be! It is make up, skin care and fashion accessories. I am hoping this will be what enables me to stay home with Madison and subsequent children for as long as possible! That of course is my ultimate goal, and my short term goal is to build a customer base and maybe line up some parties to prove to those who have seen me fail before (and sorta myself) that I can do it! :) So, please check out my website, let me know what you think; if you don't see anything you might want, pass it on to someone you know probably will! Also if you purchase online do note that you recieve free shipping with your first order of $25! I'm working on the incentives for ordering through me, booking a party, etc. The awesome part about Mark. also is that they also do fundraisers! So, let me know if that is something you may need!

Another fun thing that is new for us, is after spring break (this week) Madison and I will be at a Mother's Day Out! I will be helping teaching and therefore she will be in a class with other kids her age which I will not be teaching! :) The bonus of that, though, is I went to high school with one of her teachers, so that helps knowing her before hand; not that I would be worried at this place, it seems like a really great place to work at and for the kids! A good thing about working there is that I will be able to still pick up the girls after school, but I will not be able to watch them this summer. So, good and bad but it'll all work out in the end! :)

A lot of good things going on right now, so I'm very excited to see where it all takes us! So, stay tuned and we can all find out together! :)

Until then! :)

Baby, Sweet Baby

So, here I am after 2 am yet again still awake. I was working on cutting out some things for a baby to be born in June ;) and was thinking about how worn down I am and exhausted, etc. For the past two weeks, at least, some how Madison and I have been going to bed really late and sleeping in really late and this weekend it seemed to really show the reprecautions! Madison was cranky most of the day but took a nap like sleeping was her favorite thing; but come bed time; a time we, like most parents, use as our break became the worst part of our days! We spent several hours fighting to get her to sleep! She would even get upset over little things just because she was so tired! It was definitely frustrating b/c we knew she was tired but we couldn't do anything to help her! Not to mention what it does when both parents are worn out and exhausted from her, it just felt like we were all fighting each other. Although, I will say it was nice because in all that Jason and I knew that we were both worn out and tired, so even in the moment we may have yelled at each other or whatever but directly following understood that it wasn't personal. All day, I've been beating myself up because I hadn't addressed our little sleep problem sooner and frankly probably didn't realize the extent of our sleep schedule. Being a natural night owl, I kind of enjoyed it because I got to stay up late and sleep in; I am NOT a morning person! Although, I was actually really missing having Madison in bed by 9:30 at the latest regardless of when she would wake up in the morning. Since she was born we never really had a problem getting her to go to sleep, at least at first; as she got closer to a year or so, we did go on a few drives and/or rock her longer than usual. This past weekend I was really wishing those would work! The drive finally did, of course a drive at 1:30 in the morning to get your almost 2 year old to sleep is crazy! Of course once she gets to sleep Jason and I are telling each other she's getting up at 9am! Ideally that sounds great, not when we were up that late too and when you are worn down like we were, 9am comes fast! Back to my point, sorry, I'd been beating myself up for not addressing this situation because ultimately it had cost us some desperately needed time with friends!!! We had cancelled two play dates with one friend and I had ended up cancelling my day out today because we woke up so late and I was still half asleep even then to decide what I wanted to do. Of course the weather this weekend didn't help being so gloomy all we wanted to do was sleep and our child wanted to literally bounce off the walls or the furniture or anything she could get on! :) It really amazed me that she wasn't more tired because she's had a bit of a cold the past few days and I'm not sure what caused it but Saturday morning(ish) after having her breakfast and juice she threw up! That of course led to us missing a birthday party for one of her/our friends!! I was hesitant to go to the party because of her cough, but not knowing what had caused her to throw up and if it was going to continue I wasn't going to take a chance! All that to ultimately say that today I have really felt the toll of all of this emotionally! I just feel like I have or am drifting from my friends and somewhat Madison's friends too. When we've gone out to the store or something she just wants to run around and play and I'm just watching her thinking, she needs a playdate! It kills me, though, because I'm hesitant to schedule something we may end up backing out of because we aren't on a normal sleep schedule. Despite the fact that it's so late tonight, I am determined to be up at a decent time tomorrow and get something accomplished before lunch and get us back on a normal schedule! I know she needs it as much as I do; I'd like to think one of us needs it more than the other, but I don't think that is true at this point! I miss the playdates and time with friends, it's really worn on me and I feel like I've failed everyone, on some level I know that may not be true, but I'm so worn down it just could be. I am determined and hope to get things back on track b/c Madison and I need to feel and be normal again!! Take care and stay tuned! :)

Friday Night Sew In.....of sorts :)

So, last night I was part of the group that had a "Friday Night Sew In" I got everything in order, had Madison all set with Jason well, before I got started on anything I decided to make a pillow for my dog so he could lay under my chair while I worked. It did not work out that way, he preferred the couch! :) Needless to say I made him a pillow out of the scrap fabric and thread I've been saving to use as stuffing for him.

Amazingly, this fabric came like that, I did not do the squares, wish I could say I had, but I did not. :)

Here he is laying on it

Well, after I did that; I figured since I had recently told my aunt I would make her some reusable shopping bags to use instead of plastic! So, I decided I would do a couple of those and then try to work on a couple fo burp cloths or bibs for one of my best friends that is having a baby in June.

Here is the first bag I made. I was so excited to have time to sit down and knock out a few projects and then get on here and show everyone what I had done. Well, of course having a 21 month old, things do not always go as planned! Last night was that night! We got her laid down and in bed asleep by 10, which I wanted earlier but 10 was good! Well, of course she woke back up and decided to stay up until 2 am!!!! I did manage to do most of the bag off and on while she sat on the catch watching cartoons hoping she'd fall back asleep and of course she didn't. Finally after fighting her and trying everything we went to our last resort; the car! I was also so greatful that she stayed asleep once we got home! I wasn't completely finished once we got her to sleep so I finished it up and cut another bag out and got to sleep by 3 am! We all slept in today which was nice. I may try to do my whole project list over the course of the weekend, we shall see. I did enjoy the few moments I had to work. I absolutely love the idea of sitting down and working on stuff and looking to see what everyone else did! I am pretty sure I'm in the minority of the group of non-quilters unless the others that did something other than quilting are also quilters. :) Although a good thing because it gives me a chance to meet new people with my same passion and a chance to maybe have some tips when I do someday try my hand at quilting! :) It was fun and I look forward to the next! Look for more pictures once I do finish my projects! I am really looking forward to the baby stuff so stay tuned for that!!! :)

Latest Projects and Friday Night Sew In and Contest!

Well, since they are shorter I'll start with the sew in and the contest. The contest I posted about previously, I did not win, but I did enter to win one of 50 bags from the Green Bag Lady and I did actually win that and by the way you absolutely should check out her page in general! She is behind a GREAT CAUSE! I am becoming one that absolutely feels guilty now anytime I have plastic that I am done with or no longer need! She has a great post about the plastics in our waters that really makes you think here. Anyway, so I won one of her bags and the point is to give it to a sweetie or keep it for yourself if you choose! Well, being that one of my best friends (and the 1st person that came to mind that would use it), I picked Terri but in the email that was sent out it did mention if you don't have one, they'll send you one too! So I got 2, one for her and one for me! (Mine did come in handy this weekend at the Affair of the Heart!) She also loves pictures of you using the bag, so once Terri and I have a chance we are going to do that! :)
As for the Friday Night Sew In, there is another one coming up on the 19th I have a button linking to it here on my blog page. I am still debating what project I want to work on; I want to get going on the baby stuff I am making for WeeBoz, but I want it to be a surprise and since we have to post pictures; that's my hang up. I thought about zooming in so you can see I did something but not exactly what it looks like. I don't think I need to do any more for me after you see below. :) Stay tuned to find out! :)

So, apparently all three things in this blog seem to have two things in common; sewing and Terri! Ha! I did not plan it that way, it just happened! So, for Christmas, Terri got me this great book in which she also received and loved it so much got it for me. It is called One Yard Wonders, everything in it uses at least a yard of fabric. That's the main idea; of course some may call for extra for trim, etc but basically you could use only a yard and maybe a couple of notions, etc. Once I got this book home; I could NOT wait to get started and started going through my stash to see what I could tackle! Well, over time I managed to make a few things and when I had to watch my nieces on my birthday because of no school, I was determined it would be a fun day so I let them each pick out something they could help me with and the fabrics they wanted to use. They love helping me with crafty stuff. Of course Kyleigh was more active in helping than Katelynn, that is just their personalities! Well, of course typing about it does not do justice, so here are some pictures! :)

 

So, since it won't let me put text under the pictures the way I laid them out, and the pictures are not necessarily in order they were made; here are some descriptions: the tops pictures are the book of course; the first project is listed as a sewing kit, but I made it to use as a Ninentendo DS case, but it may end up being used as a sewing kit!; the next project is called a scrunchie bag; it looked really cute in the book and I think mine turned out okay, my strap is shorter than what it calls for, it is very cute and handy!; the next project is of course Kyleigh's apron, she is very into arts and crafts so she wanted to make the apron that holds pencils or paintbrushes or whatever!; the next of course is Katelynn's, we really love how this turned out! It is one of the book pictures at the top, it is an apron that converts into a craft tote, I actually cut an extra main piece I'm going to make one for Madi; the next is a reusable shopping bag.....goes with using instead of plastic! I also love the way it folds up and can fit into your purse!; the next I love because I've been wanting to make a sewing machine cover and there it is! I did mess it up a little in cutting it b/c I was using my new rotary cutter and board but I made up for it; next is a trash compartment for your car! I was going to take the picture in the car but I took the picture in the evening that was too cold for that!; and finally this bag is called the folklore bag and the picture in the book is a bag made out of squirrel fabric, so I call mine an urban folklore bag! :) I just finished it on Valentine's Day! I love it so far! I should have put more pockets in it; but I like it!

I do completely intend to make as many things from this book as possible and use it over and over again! There are lots of things in there that you could make as gifts or for yourself! Good baby stuff and actually some adult clothing too with just a yard of fabric! It is great! I HIGHLY recommend it!!

That's all I have, I hope you enjoy the pictures and should be fun and interesting what I make! Take care and let me know what you think!!

Giveaway!

So, since I've participated in the Friday Night Sew In; I've found a lot of other fun blogs; one I've decided to follow is Sandy's in Stitches and she is having a giveaway for her one year blogiversary! If you want you can certaintly check it out!