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Showing posts from 2015

September

This September I attended my second Hustle and Scout market and experienced their temporary location at the Old Bus Depot. The Kingston building was certainly roomier and I loved having a corner stall this time, allowing a new set up. While I thought the Hangar was a bit busier, it was still a great day and can't wait to find out their new home, to be announced very soon for the December market. A big hit at markets this year has been handbag hooks. The hooks have previously been my best seller on Etsy but more and more people are discovering them at the market (and interpreting their own way of how to use them!). This month I added four more to the store, with the popular triangle print selling at Hustle and Scout. I've still got six available in my Etsy store here . And a lot of September was spent preparing for Etsy's first charity fundraiser together with Because I'm A Girl titled #makeforgood. The charity is raising money to assist girls in developing

August

This month was another free from markets but gave me a chance to catch up and make a few changes. I worked on improving my display by adding levels to my table space, made a few more pieces and spent some time designing for the future. The improvement was in stages starting with recycling cardboard boxes from home. First the boxes were modified to create the right display and duct taped together. Then given two layers of white paint to cover up the colours and lastly they were covered with fabric made from a tablecloth to match my table. I'm very happy with the results, I can now display six bags on the table comfortably and create a bit more interest with more levels in the clutches area. Can't wait to try them at my next market - Hustle and Scount on September 12. I also added new women's wallets to my store this month. Late last year I first made women's wallets and the idea proved to be popular. This time I've modified the wallet to create a

July

This month I attended my second Three Sixty Fashion Market and had lots of fun meeting new people and selling a few things too! Mel and Nathan, the organisers of this market are very inviting and helpful too, I'm looking forward to the next one in November. It will be a big celebration with their first anniversary.   During the day I met Emma who was the lucky winner of the $100 gift voucher and chose to spend some of it on a new bag. I also met Aine from Lost Four Words who was accompanying Emma and will be writing up a piece on me very soon! Onto the sewing side, I particularly love this month's bag. It's a great size and it's simple but still effective with a pattern. It features a large front pocket covered by the equally large patterned flap, finished with a magnetic snap closure. Inside has three open pouch pockets plus an extra zippered pocket and the bag closes with a zip. The black one was snapped up as soon as I listed it on Etsy by a fellow stallh

June

This month I had a break from markets, but was, as always, kept busy with sewing and making fresh stock. The bag of the month is a cross body with an adjustable strap (wear on the shoulder if you prefer) and lots and lots of pockets! The front features three - two zippered on either side with a small flapped pocket in the middle in a contrasting pattern. The bag itself closes with a zip and inside has three open pouch pockets and another zippered pocket. It took me a while to pick out the fabrics to match but I'm very happy with the final results! Available in my Etsy store here . As it was bit quiet this month, I'd like to show off our 'Cat Shack' - a repurposed piece of furniture turned into a home for the cats! Check out the before and after photos below, it was lots of fun to work on and the cats love it! We began by taking out the drawer, moving it up to create a shelf in the middle and finished with the decorations and cushions. Ha

May

May was spent restocking in preparation for my next market - Three Sixty Fashion Market. Three Sixty focuses on recycled fashion and handmade items as apposed to 'fast fashion' and what you would find at a shopping centre. The May market was held on Sunday the 25th and after a chilly -5.8 morning and set up we were ready to go. A lot of stalls were selling vintage clothing and accessories which proved popular with crowds, it was fun watching dressed up people walk by too. It was an enjoyable day and I'm looking forward to the next one in July. As shoulder bags were my best seller at the last market, my next design was another. This one features a patterned front and back with side pockets on the plain sides. The bag closes with a zipper along the top and features extra pockets inside. I'm loving the bright patterns featured in these bags! Running low on coin purses, I made a few more for the market too. The hardest part (as always) was choosing which fab

April

April saw Easter at the beginning of the month, which was a great chance to take a break and catch up with visiting family. It was also the perfect opportunity to see places in Canberra I'd been meaning to get to but just never did! Sometimes a mini holiday in your own city is just as good as travelling to a new one. After the four day break it was back into it with my approaching market. Hope you had a Happy Easter! I attended Hustle and Scout on April 11 and it was amazing. The twilight fashion market was jam packed with people (7000 estimated!) for the entire five hours and for good reason. While the event was full of beautiful stalls, there was also roaming models including the Hustle and Scout dancers, live music and creative workshops. Plus the market merged with The Forage - incredible food stalls. My best market yet, I can't wait for the next one! Stall set up at Hustle and Scout I loved the lantern decorations at the market And of course the new add

March

March, March, March. What can I tell you about this month? Well I've been sewing like mad finishing new designs with the deadlines of markets and the good news is I finished well ahead of schedule! (the bag of the month for April is already done...). But you can check that one out in the blog next month (or just on my Facebook page if you can't wait ;)) I've always been fairly organised but putting everything down in a calendar makes a huge difference! Bag of the month now available on Etsy So this month's bag featured first back in January as I made the first one for myself. I'm still loving mine and after being initially worried about the size, I'm quite happy with it. My dilemma was wanting a small cute bag but trying to fit all my stuff into it! The bags feature a contrasting bow and adjustable single strap with a magnetic snap closing flap. Inside features a couple of pockets plus an extra on the outside of the bag. All set up at Suitcase Rumma

February

A bit of a quiet one this month, but still some news to report on. During February I continued my coin purse creations and added larger purses to the shop. The bigger version includes more card slots and the length to fit notes. A slimline wallet is what I like to refer to them as. Available in three fun prints on Etsy now. February was also home to an event I'd been looking forward to for the last couple of months. The Colour Run came to Canberra for the second time and I finally had the chance to participate. Quite popular now, the Colour Run is held in cities all over the world. For those who don't know, you start off in white and travel through different colour zones on the 5km track sprayed with dust and end up looking like a rainbow at the end! I made a special all white bag for the day and had a piece of art at the end of it.     And lastly, it's time to introduce our newest family member! Little Miss Luna is a blue mitted ragdoll and after a shy co

January

So it's been a busy start to the year! I began the month with a few custom wallet orders I'd collected over the Christmas break and then proceeded to add four more handbag hooks to Etsy . Custom Wallets in Beautiful Colours New Handbag Hooks in store Also added to the shop this month was coin purses, where I kept the design simple and let the fabrics do the talking. The small version features a card slot which will house one or two cards and the purse closes with a top zip. I also began a large version too, but waiting for the zips to arrive in the mail delayed production, this one will have to pop up next month! New Coin Purses in Bright Colours Another focus this month was participating in the 30 Questions Challenge organised by Jess from Create and Thrive . Everyday a new business question was the focus to keep us handmade business owners on track for an awesome 2015. Some questions have been challenging and some have been obvious, but all hav