Here are some bags that i've taken from my retail space at Mew and have relisted in the shop. Take a look!
Soon to be listed on Etsy...and by soon i mean probably tomorrow...is this bag! It's made out of one of the coolest vintage fabrics i've ever found and it has abstract sailboats in amazing neon colors! I have a good amount of fabric left, so i hope to make one for myself, though i can honestly say that i never really take the time to do that. 
While making it, i was watching Full House- Season 1 and came across one of my favorite episodes EVER, in which DJ & Kimmy form their own band called The Bracelets!
Yesterday (meaning Tuesday), i set out to make some new and simple mini tote bags and picked out 11 different fabrics- new, repurposed/recycled, and vintage- and started sewing like crazy. I don't really know how i arrived at 11, but with as much fabric as i have, i guess i had to stop somewhere.
Sooo, it's totally past 3am now and I'm finally done! I sort of made them with the Philly Etsy Street Team Autumn Handmade Market in mind, but i still haven't decided if i'm going to participate or not. I guess i also wanted to test out my productivity, though they were fairly simple and i don't usually like to make so many of the same style all at once...usually because i get bored, and/or distracted way too easily and end up with piles of pre-cut fabric that i have no interest in assembling.
Since i'm out of the woven labels that i usually order, and i just paid my business taxes -aka- SUCKAGE!, i made some new labels using my embroidery machine with different colors of thread and felt. I like the way they turned out, but it moves a little slow and is a bit time consuming to sit there and make sure the thread doesn't eff up here or there.
Anyway, it is now way past 3AM now and i should probably call it a night, but i just wanted everyone to know that i LOVE this vintage sweater from TheVintageZoo on Etsy:
...as if that wasn't obvious enough!
Here's a new Purple Bow Bag that i made last night! The fabric is this crazy neon purple and neon red printed corduroy that's totally obnoxious, but in a good way. Unless of course you're one of those folks who is completely horrifed by dayglo colors...or color in general. (It's okay, i wear a lot of black). The picture below is of Emily, who i met back in April when i had a trunk show at Best Friends Boutique in Phoenixville, PA. As you can see, she purchased the green and purple leopard print Bow Bag.
Also, here are some new Keyboard Pouches i made using really thick vintage sheets with a large floral print, and a custom Boombox Pouch i made for Ryan. He picked out this boombox, a yellow zipper and matching lining, and the back is made out of bright green wool with a navy blue grid pattern.
There's not much else to report here for today. Tomorrow, Ryan and I will be heading over to our local Etsy Street Team meeting for the first time ever and going to see 30 Days of Night, which i am DYING to see. Woohoo!
Sooo, i didn't get to make a bag yesterday. My crazy sleep schedule caught up with me and made me all sorts of achey and i just felt out of it all day. I did manage to take pictures of the new bags for Etsy, so at least i was productive in a different way.
On the subject of photographing my items for Etsy, I never really know how to stage my bags so that they'll look they're best. If i had it my way, i'd have actual "models" to style so i could show what kind of girl i picture using each bag. Yesterday, i took some photos and played around with things, and i actually like the way everything turned out. I'm a little concerned that the plain background might be perceived as a little cold and impersonal, but if i can't stage things exactly how i want them, then i'd rather have the background be nondescript.
Here are two Before & Afters:
In other news, i purchased 4 new fabrics today.
Here's the bestest:
It looks so much better in person and it's a nice, sturdy, silk-like fabric so it has a sheen to it. When i went to pay, the young check out girl remarked about how great the fabric was, and i agreed and told her that i purchased everything they had left...several yards, though i'm not exactly sure how much. I get all panicky and hoardy like that sometimes when i find fabric that i really love. She was super disappointed because she was planning on making a bag out of it, and i really didn't know what to tell her so I just kept apologizing. She even complained to the customers behind me! If i was her i would've stashed it where no one could find it. Ahhh, whatevs.
Vacation is next week, so the bag making is definetly on hold for about a week. I checked the 10 Day forecast for Las Vegas and i'm already dreading this vacation! Upwards of 100 degrees? So gross. Luckily, we're also headed to San Francisco where the whether will supposedly in the 60s.
So, starting this week, my goal is to make at least ONE large bag a day (aside from other smaller projects). I don't know if that's really such a difficult goal for other bag makers, but i tend not to like working in a "production line" manner when it comes to my larger bags.
So far, I've accomplished what i've set out to do, though it's only Wednesday. Plus, my sleep schedule is already so out of whack that i might end up paying for it by Friday.
In other news, my tiny craft space is in desperate need of rearranging and i really want some wall-mounted shelves, plus a separate space for non-sewing activities. I've already found some prints on Etsy that i'd like to have once this room is completely done, but that involves money and that's something i don't have much of right now! Boo.
On the subject of Etsy...Ry is now a member and is working on some art for his new shop! I'm so excited! I saw some sketches that he worked on the other day and I can't wait to see how everything turns out. After working on that silly Zombie portrait of us, i sort of want to get back into drawing and making art, and maybe one day, sell some originals and prints in my shop. For the time being, i'll just concentrate on my sewing and jewelry.
