More Etsy time Wasters

There are plenty of things on ETSY that can suck up your time, like hovering for 'hours' over a page waiting for a little box to appear so that you can publish a curated "treasury", a collection of items of your choice. Here is what I put together.

 Keep New Zealand Green

A collection of (mostly) Green things from Kiwi Etsy sellers. . It would be great if you could click  and look at the actual page, and clicking on each individual pic pushes me up some mythical 'ranking'. (you don't have to look at everything, just click).

More stockings

You must be getting sick of it, but my goal for about the last 3 years has been to have christmas stuff to sell at christmas, and having it up early doesn't do any harm. The red set sold almost immediately , thanks to a wonderful reader. So here are some more. A more subdued, but no less elegant set.

 

Rubies and Cream

I like the red set better, the contrast shows off tatting beautifully, but I had a vision for these, and they turned out as I wanted. I have a couple of other sets ready for finishing, black and green, but other stitching is occupying me currently.

Holiday stitchin

I am not gettig a whole heck of a lot done here. Its school holidays, and for those of you who forget, it's the WINTER holiday here. Wet, cold etc etc. Stuck with children a lot, in other words.

I have been doing a bit of stitching though. Here is a pic of your block Kerry. Progress is slow, but it is going
I often get asked how I get so much done, well, in the pic below, is a small revelation, a wee glimpse of  why....

can you spot my chinese laundry of a drying rack (which has become , by default, the place to dump all crap 'we' can't be bothered putting away...). What you can't see is the  2 seater sofa that is currently housing 4 loads of dry washing. I haven't had time to put it away, what with stitching, blogging, tweeting, etsying, facebooking, baking....you see, my deep dark, shameful secret, I avoid housework like the plague. I do what I have to  to not be thoroughly horrified should someone come visiting unexpectedly.

I have also been working on another bag, which may, or may not, have a home, depending on the next bag I do...so if you fancy it, you can put in for second dibs. It still has a little more beading etc to finish it off.
I am liking these bags a lot. I think they a filling a gap, between completely plain bags (no embellishment) to  bags such as Pat Winter's, and Pam Kellogg's beautiful creations. While I LOVE their work -no doubt about it-  I think mine are falling somewhere in the middle, and while that was not by design, or conscious forethought, I am liking that idea, and it will be a conscious decision from now on. I could never compete with the style of those two ladies, and nor would I want to.

Back to stitching, with a dinner thrown in there too ( I do manage to feed my family, and Rob does the dishes)

One hit Wonder?

I am feeling a bit like a one hit wonder with constantly posting about what I just listed on ETSY, but thats what I am making at the moment, so there would be no posting otherwise.
So, that said, check out what I just listed on ETSY.

I wanted to do some stockings that looked lovely, but weren't to time consuming. I think these fit the bill. I have added an eyelet for putting a hanging loop thru. That worked quite well. I have some other ideas that I think will be reasonably quick, but visually effective, AND I have 2 weeks of holidays to work on them.

I also listed some tatted doilies, on their own. I would love some feedback on the price etc ( I am wearing big girl panties, I can take it).

~~~~~~~~~~
Today was a bit of a special day for me. It was mine, and Jono's last day at Playcentre.  I have been At Weymouth Playcentre for 6.5 years. Jono started when he was 6 weeks old.
- to cut a long story short : early childhood education for 0-6 year olds, run by the parents on a voluntary basis. We receive government funding and have to train to a certain level  to run licensed sessions. I have really enjoyed Playcentre. It was  a lifesaver for me as a new mum, who didn't know anybody around where I lived. I got to interact with other parents. I got to do a 'job' which re-instilled that self esteem we women so often lose when we become "mother". I gained many skills - leadership, management, financial (when I say run by parents , we do it ALL), humility. I  have contributed not only to the management of my centre, but the overall management of all the centre's in our area. I got to work with a great group of mums, dads, nannas and poppas, and  I can leave knowing I touched the lives of many children, and hopefully sparked a lifelong interest in learning.

Having said all that though, I am SO HAPPY to be sending my Jono off to school. It has been a long, hard, sometimes very dark, road choosing to stay home and raise these kids for the last 9.5 years. I am looking forward to some time for me. My BFF is back in  Auckland so we are going to have a 'play' date once a week at least.
Of course I will still be involved with Playcentre (in a paid capacity), and I am still treasurer for my centre until the end of the financial year. I am looking forward to seeing what new things lie ahead.

Over and out ... and God (or anyone of a higher power , I am not fussy) give me strength to get thru the holidays!

Guest Spot

The Magnificent Mary Corbet, over on Needle'n Thread has featured a post by me. I am quite chuffed about this as I know Mary has a large readership that covers a wide range of 'needle' techniques (not just CQers).
It is a new post (as in, not just rehashed from here) so do pop over if you are interested. The focus of the article is on my "retail" adventures.


Speaking of which, I just packaged up 3 bags, and though I LOVE that they are sold, I actually find it really hard to part with them. Do find this too, even if something is made specifically for sale?

June Giveaway - just under the wire

Two postcards again this month. (I am predicting I will forget July as well!).
What I would like from you this month is to visit my ETSY shop and buy something...JUST KIDDING!!
Though really, I would like you to visit my ESTY shop, and tell me what you would chose, if the giveawy  prize was something from the shop.
Here are the postcards for the month. They are actually the last two I have made up. Please name your preference in your comment.

 

red

pink

Another one bites the dust...

Another bag completed.
Sea Dreams 

  and I have finished the custom orders, These bags are just lovely. I am so pleased with how they have turned out. I will be embarking on some more black in the near future

I now officially have only Kerry's RR to do. I did start last night with adding some tatting (of course!) I have just realised that I missed the giveaway AGAIN, so I will post that next.

Busy Day, mucho acheivedo

After beavering away last night and today I have two more bags completed and listed over on ETSY.
My Shabby Chic Green - a more casual affair

 

and this sexy little moulin rouge-esque black on red - definitely 'red'y for a night out

( bad joke, I know)

I am getting the hang of all the little tricks for putting these bags together and it is getting easier and easier each time. They are fully reversible (so no exposed seams inside) and that poses the occasionaly problem.

I have the hand finishing to do on the custom orders, and then another to assemble. Hopefully those will ready to post tomorrow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I thought I would post here an answer to a question on one of my groups. You might find it useful!! Here is the pic the post relates to

I just have a tip to share for colours etc. I try to use colour of a similar
shade or value in the adjoining patch. So, for the dark velvet patch, I would
use an equally dark thread/ribbon, ( or sequins/ beads for embellishment) in the
patches adjoining (above) it. That helps the lines not look so severe, as the
seams can 'flow' into each other.
I did have a hard time picturing (Leslies great isn't she!), but I thought your
lace was lovely, and is leaving some room for some lovely embellishment. I am
thinking you will do your herringbone at the botton (flat side) of the lace, up
into the lighter patches. On the lace there are three teardrop shapes above each
point, they would look great with your organza ribbon in a simple ribbon stitch
in each one. The holes in the middle of the scrolls could have a pink bead in
each to match the rose. The points could have a fan in a lighter purple, pulling
those other patch colours down into the darker patch.
All just "COULDS" to give you (and others reading) ideas, absolutely no "have
too's"

truckin' along

Here is the pic of one of the bags I got assembled. It looks very nice. The handles still need that final stitching done.

and here is the blue(ish) stripy bag

 

  

This was fun to do. Like a postcard, with the seam treatments, but I got to add lots of beads and sequins .

I got myself a small OTTlite and i am using that in the evenings. I am still having trouble distingushing colours, but i do think it is better. I could tell the blue from the green in this bag, so that is a great start.

Apart from assembling the bags, I am going to start working on Kerrys Xmas RR block next.

A few finishes

Sunday here. Its cold (just as an aside) and I have been busy.
Done today.
One black bag assembled, lined, sewn up -just hand fininshing to do.
One green bag, assembled
One red bag - bits cut out
Other black bag - assembled, lining etc ready to cut out and sew.
Another black bag - pieced


Remember these

Well, they are now these..

 

and they are listed over at ETSY. I was a bit clever this time and put a small lining in them. A bit tricky, but I did succeed. 

 

This block has morphed into this

 

She is quite lovely. This was a great way to use a block. She is here.

Thats me for now. Amazing Race has just started. 

Wed 17th June

Gosh, I am all out of titles, but not out of pics.
Here is the red bag from the previous post. I actually really like how it turned out. I was dubious to start, as my night pieceing under artificial light was a bit dodge (the pink was supposed to be red!). If I did it again I would use cream beads to tie in with the tatting and move that lightness around the block. I have about 4 bags assemble now, so a marathon piecing effort will be required soon.

And on a positive not, my vistaprint cards arrived, from the Netherlands! They are very nice quality. On reflection I should of used "www" rather than "http://". I didn't add phone as most of these go in RR bags, or with purchased item, and I figure I can always write on the back if need be. I probably should of used a less detailed picture, but overall, they will do the job.

more work in progress

I have been busy stitching away. The embellishment on the second custom order is finished. Now I have to actually 'finish' them, as in assemble into a bag....
This is a sexy little number with its maroon

 

  

here are some other things i have been working on to

thats all for today.
Still waiting for a reply from vista print on the shipping cost and bogus offers, still waiting for the cards for that matter....

Custom Bag Progress

I have been lucky enough to have a  couple of bags requested. Although there was a plan, they have  taken their own direction, and I can only hope they are liked.

 

I really like the colours in this one. It is very elegant. The brief was originally black on black. I freaked at that. I didn't see how that particular tone on tone would work, but it does!! and quite nicely. But I do think a complimentary colour is needed to bring some life.

I am unsure about the 'silvery' looking beaded daisies, but this is a bag front, and it won't look as it does now once the bag is assembled. The beads and sequins catch the light beautifully.

It's my blog, and I'll moan if I want to! (and swear- consider yourself warned)

So here is my story. My Moo cards are running out, so I decided to order some more. Went thru the whole laborious task of uploading and cropping new pics (because I wanted to change them), did all the bits and pieces I had to do, get to the end and hit the buy button, do some more stuff, hit the buy button, only to see that shipping will be $13 US. WHAT THE FUCK!  Well, time wasted, but I didn't complete the order, and then sent a very disgruntled email to said Moo 'people'.

So , the next step in my journey. I googled mini cards/business cards "search New Zealand". That is the key here people- New Zealand search. And I come up with a  .co.nz address, and I assume ( I know , i know, can we say "stupid") that these would be made in NZ, and therefore would not cost so much to ship. This process was even more laborious - BTW it was Vistaprint- and to add to actually getting the card designed and done,  sealing the deal with the 'buy' button, i then had to click thru pages, and pages, and pages, and, yes you guessed it, pages of other advertising before I could actually buy them. I did decide to get some return address labels. so I get to the end, shipping $19. WHAT. THE. FUCK!! ( I must mention that all pricing was in NZ$)

Well, i cut my order way down, from 500 cards and labels to  250 cards, no labels, Shipping dropped down to $12 (and I was getting 150 more cards than with Moo). Still not happy, but by this time i have probably wasted about an hour and a half of my life. So I purchase. Then, then... after the purchase is complete, i get a little message saying , "you have 10 minutes to accept this deal. 500 more cards NO SHIPPING cost." Oh, I think, ok. I can do that. Could I?? Do you think I could do that? No, I could not, The site could not process that  order at this time. I am sure that 'the site' would suddenly remedy  that issue at 10mins and 1 sec....

So I have my cards (in 14-21 working days). They  better be worth it ( that  shipping  for both companies was for the slow boat via china btw- not even super duper express which was - hope you are wearing your depends- $30!!). Vistaprint got an even dirtier email from me regarding the misleading URL, the highway robbery shipping and the totally bogus offer at the end. The Moo people have had the good grace to respond, and assure me that the shipping charge is WRONG. Shit, you think!! They would most assuredly refund me the excess. Well you won't, because I never gave it to you in the first place, dick head.

Well, what have I learnt? Not a fuck of a lot really. But if any of you know of anywhere decent, and reasonable for business cards, let me know would you.


edited : thanks for your comments, they made me laugh. This will make you laugh. I just got my first spam - advertising, from vistaprint, offering me just about everything FOR FREE!! woohoo...
I unsubscribed , and  god help the automated moron that sends me the next one.

Thanks Susan's husband!!

Susan/CqLily said...
Well, Jo, I found out who bought your purse...your beautiful purse! My dear sweet husband. I had seen it one your etsy site and told him I loved it and evidently he ordered it right away! It arrived today safely and was a wonderful surprise. If possible, I think it is more lovely in person than in the photo!
I am soooo excited! All of your work is gorgeous!

Thank you!
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Don't we all wish we had a husband like this, and I sure am thankful for Susan's!
Susan, I hope you enjoy the bag, and I am pleased to hear that it got to you safely. Did he grab the mail before you, or were you wondering what the heck you had ordered (it was addressed to you).