Shop Changes

So I have been thinking a lot lately of my little shop on Etsy. I have been selling bags and accessories online for about five years but about 8 years in total. I've been feeling a little burnt out lately. I work a 40 hr a week job and easily put in another 30 a week sewing. I have decided to focus mainly on wallets and smaller accessories as they are my biggest sellers. I will be putting my bags on sale and won't be listing any more anytime soon. I feel it's better for me to focus on the more popular items and give myself a little break. I'm not saying I won't be making bags again but I need to focus on something else for a little while.

I have been quilting a lot lately and making pillows and placemats, a lot more home items. This is something I'm going to consider adding to my shop or opening up a shop later in the spring for home items. We'll see where it takes me. In the meantime, my wallets and pouches and smaller wristlet bags will still be available in the shop and I hope to have more variety soon.

My bags will be put on sale to clear out starting today, so check it out if you are looking for a new bag.

New Exciting Books

I bought two new books today.
One is Amy Butler's Style Stitches, 12 easy ways to 26 wonderful bags. I have been waiting for my local bookstore to get this since it was released. Today was finally the day. I only had a chance to glance through it briefly before going to work. I'm very excited about this. Why? I don't really know because I normally hate bag patterns and always design my own. I think it's the pink cover. I just signed up for the bag swap at Sew Mama Sew, so I'm thinking I'll try one of these great bags for my swap pattern.
The Second one is Dare To Be Square Quiting by Boo Davis. Again, I have only briefly flipped through this book but already love it. I don't think I've made it a secret that I love straight lines and a clean modern look. I still have to make my moms Christmas gift quilt so maybe I'll try one of these.
Does anyone else have any new or old favourite sewing books they'd like to share?

Park Slope Wristlets

I mentioned these briefly in my last post. These were for a 13 yr old's birthday party. The birthday party was at a spa where the bday girl and 2 friends got manicures, pedicures and age appropriate makeup. How fun! These were used for the loot bags. I used a good chunk of my Erin McMorris Park Slope fabric. I was happy with how these turned out. So bright and cheerful and of course I can't do a wristlet without a removable yo-yo pin.

Custom Orders

I have been working on some custom orders lately so I have been a little to busy to do much of anything else. Here is one I just finished for bridesmaids gifts. They are double pleat totes with Amy Butlers Optic Blossom Linen. I really love this fabric. It's also the colours of the wedding. How pretty and clean is that?

I'm also working on some wristlet/cosmetic bags for a preteen birthday party. These are almost done and quite cute.

New Bags

I have been making some new bags but as usual, I am very slow in posting them. I wonder if this is because I secretly want to keep them for myself. This is the everyday messenger bag. It's a little smaller than most of my bags but big enough to fit all of the daily essentials. I love the simplicity and the pleated corners that give it depth. I only have one in the shop right now but there will be more coming.......eventually.

New In Shop

I have been sewing. Really I have. It might not seem like it since I haven't been listing much. I just really hate taking pictures and editing them. I would rather just keep sewing. Here are a couple of new bags I've just added to my shop. I know I always say this but these are my favourite so far.

Moving Sale

As I said in my last post, I am in the process of moving. It has been quite sudden. I had just started thinking about moving and casually looking at places. I walked into the apartment that I'm moving to and knew instantly it was the one. I think it had a lot to do with the fireplace (non-working but very pretty) that takes up almost an entire wall. The problem is, is that it is significantly smaller than the 4 bedroom house I am currently living in. I used to share this house with my younger brother and various roommates that have been in and out over the years. They have all moved out and I have found that this house is way too big for me to keep up on my own. So I think It goes without saying that I will downsizing. Fortunately for me I am not a pack rat and hate clutter. In trying to make my move easier I have significantly marked down about half the items in my shop. If there is something you love and have to have I would get it quick. I don't know how long I will be running the sale for but probably only until I find room for everything in my new place. Here is just a small sample of the marked down items.

August Winner

The August winner has been picked using Random.org. The winner this month is Astraea. Your bag will be sent as soon as you contact me with your address. Thank you everyone for your very helpful comments. I can hardly wait to do some fall fabric shopping.
My September giveaway may be late this month as I am in the process of moving. It happened quite suddenly so I haven't had a lot of time to prepare. I just found an apartment I love and took it right away so this week has been a whirlwind. I will also be marking down some items in my shop significantly in the next couple of days to make the move easier and make room for some new bags I have coming. Make sure you check out my shop this week for some great deals.

August Bag Giveaway

I really meant to post this earlier in the month but I don't know where the time went. I have lots of new items and a couch overhaul that I have been dying to show but I just can't seem to find the time to post. I will really try to be better now that summer is almost over. I am probably the only one who is happy about that but I can't help it. I love the cool weather and the smell of fall. I am able to get so much more work done when my sewing room is not so hot.
So to celebrate the start of fall, I am giving away my last side tie tote in Amy Butler's Coriander Clay fabric from the Belle collection. This is one of my favourite bags and it has been discontinued.
To enter just post a comment about my store and let me know what fabrics you're loving for fall. The contest will end at Sunday September 6th at 8:00 a.m. Est. Please include you're email in your post.

Amy Butler Diaper Bag

I was recently asked to make a diaper bag for a girl I work with. She wanted a big bag with lots of pockets. I had bought Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones a few months ago but had yet to make anything from it. I decided to try the diaper bag from this book as it was loaded with pockets. This was a very easy bag to make. I used home dec fabrics for the inside and outside. I wouldn't have picked these fabrics myself but they looked cute in the bag. I couldn't believe how big this bag was. It is huge and loaded with pockets on the inside and outside. The only changes I made was I left out the bag divider and I added a magnetic snap closure flap. I would definitely make this bag again. Here are some quick pics. I'm sorry they're not very good as I had to take them very quick before I left for the baby shower.

July Winners

The winners for July's giveaway are Ammie and Barbie. The winners were chosen using random.org. I have emailed the winners and bags will be sent out when I receive your addresses. Thanks for entering everyone and stay tuned for August's giveaway coming soon.

July Bag Giveaway

I know I'm late again this month. I just don't know where July went! To celebrate my 2 year anniversary of selling on Etsy and also for hitting 300 in sales, I am giving away 2 bags this month. To enter just post a comment on this post about my shop, your favourite sewing blogs or anything sewing related ie sites, fabric, tips etc... To gain another entry, blog about this giveaway and post your blog link in the comment section. I will run the contest until 12:00 P.M. EST August 3rd. Please make sure your email address is easy to find or right in your post so I can easily contact the winners. Here are the bags up for grabs this month. To make things fair I will package the bags now and send them out to the winners when they are chosen, so I don't know who is getting which bag. Good Luck!

Anniversary

July is my 2 year anniversary of selling on Etsy. It has been a very fun 2 years and it's very interesting to see how my work has changed over the years. To celebrate my anniversary, I have added a lot more stuff to my sale section. I am also offering an additional 10% off any purchase for the month of July for my blog readers. Just put anniversary in the comment section of your order and I will refund the 10%. This is on items only, not on shipping price. I will leave you with some pics of items that I have just put on sale.

June Winner

Thanks for entering the giveaway everyone. I have picked a winner using random.org. The winner of this months bag is Modern Lunacy. Congratulations and please contact me with your shipping info so I can send out your new bag. Thanks again everyone for entering and for your very helpful comments. If you didn't win, don't worry there will be another giveaway in July.

June Giveaway

June's giveaway starts today. All you have to do is go to my shop and comment on anything you like dislike etc.. or tell me what features you'd like to see in a bag. The prize this month is the Pleated Market Tote in my favourite fabric. Amy Butler's Kashmir Olive from the Belle collection and orange corduroy. Please leave your email or your etsy shop link in your post. I have had some difficulties contacting winners in the past and have had to redraw.
The contest will be running from now until June 28th at 9:00 P.M. EST.

Double Pleat Tote

There are some new bags in the shop. These are Double Pleat Totes. They are the same as the Double Pleat Tote with Sash (which have sold out) but without the sash. I love these bags. They are probably one of my most favourite bags I've ever made. They are a great large bag that holds a lot of stuff but are still light weight. I especially love the wider straps. They're really comfortable on your shoulder when you carry a lot. They are made out of home dec weight fabric and 150z organic canvas. I am in love with this organic canvas. It's expensive but worth every penny. These bags here are made with fabric from Joel Dewberry's Ginseng collection which I absolutly love.



I am also working on some mini notebook holders. They are really cute and handy. They hold a little notebook and pen and has an extra pocket for receipts or coupons. I will hopefully have some posted today.

And lastly, I haven't forgotten about June's giveaway. I will be posting that hopefully in the next week I just haven't decided on the prize yet.

May Giveaway Winners

First of all I have to thank everyone for their very positive comments. I have read all 515 of them and can't wait to go back and check out some of your blogs. I have picked a winner using the random number generator. The winner of the side tie tote is Shannon Hillinger.
I have also decided because of the overwhelming amount of entries to have a second winner. The runner up winner is Cass. Cass will be receiving a mystery handmade prize.
If you can both contact me asap I will get your prizes sent out right away.
Thanks everyone for entering and if you didn't win this time, don't forget to come back and watch for June's giveaway.

May Giveaway

I'm doing something a little different for May's Giveaway. One of my favourite sites Sew, Mama, Sew is having a giveaway day. The Giveaway is running from May 27th-May 31st. I am starting my giveaway today. To pick the prize, I have gone through all the previous giveaway comments and the Optic Blossom Side Tie Tote stood out as a favourite every month. This will be the giveaway bag this month. To enter just leave a comment on this post about what you like or dislike in my shop, what fabric you love right now or what kind of closure you prefer in a bag ie. magnetic snap, zipper, etc. After you've left your comment make sure to click on the Sew, Mama, Sew link to enter all the other giveaways. My contest ends May 31st at 11:00 p.m. EST. It is open internationally and the winner will be picked using Random.org. Good luck everyone!

Updated Messenger Bag

I have made a change to my new messenger style bags. I have had a lot of requests for a zipper closures in my bags. For my other styles, I didn't like the look of the zippers but I thought the messenger style was the perfect bag for this. I have to say I like it a lot with the zipper. It's a larger bag, designed to carry a lot of stuff so the zipper keeps everything from spilling out. I only have one listed right now but more will be coming. This one is made with 100% cotton canvas and Floral Ribbon from Denyse Schmidt's County Fair collection.

New Bag in Shop

I have added a few new bags to the shop. It's a double pleat bag that is very roomy. I love the sash which will also come in handy if you need a belt or a hair scarf in a pinch. The one in the first picture is already sold but there are still 2 available. I hope to have more added soon and plan to do some plain ones with your choice of sash and hopefully have extra sashes available for purchase so you can change them up.