Deal of the Day - It's Back!

Deal of the day is back for the weekend!  You still have time to get items before Christmas, most everything is ready to ship.

Today's special is 25% off wristlets - and they are already marked down, so no coupon codes!

I have two styles - first is this shaped wristlet - flat bottom, round top, several fabrics available

Second is the flat double pocket style.

Happy shopping!

Susan

Day 4 - Deal of the Day

Well, editing all of those zipper wallets twice wasn't that much fun!  I have a lot of stuff to do today, so to make things easy, today's deal of the day is Free US shipping - use coupon code DEALSHIP!

You can check out all of the items I have available in my etsy shop, and when you checkout use the coupon code and the shipping will be removed!

Happy shopping!

Susan

Deal of the Day - Day 3

This is so much fun! 

Today's deal of the day is 25% off zipper wallets.  The zipper wallets come in two sizes, the larger size is big enough for an iPhone, iPod touch, droid, etc. 

This is one of my most popular items at craft shows, so this is a great deal!

The price is already adjusted, so no coupon code or refunds needed.

Happy shopping!

Susan

Deal of the Day - Day 2

What's that you say?  Another Deal of the Day?!?

The day 2 Deal of the Day will be - Lanyards  BOGO - Buy 1 get one Half off. To receive this discount purchase both lanyards at full price and the difference will be refunded.

This is so much fun!

Susan

Deal of the Day - Day 1

I just decided that I'm going to run a 'deal of the day' for the next couple of weeks.  I think I can come up with that many unique deals!

So for Day 1 (on December 1) - all wallets are marked down 50% - that's a pretty good deal to start with!

All are in stock and ready to ship.  This sale will run until I post the deal of the day - day 2!
Happy shopping!

Susan

Other projects

From time to time I do some sewing for a local interior decorator.  Over the years I've done pillows, drapes, valances, and other small sewing projects for her.

This weekend I started a project making some throw pillows and a valance.  Here's a picture of the first pillow - I'll be making four from this fabric. 

There's a second fabric for four more pillows and a valance - I haven't opened the fabric yet, so I'll get to be surprised at what it is!

I enjoy the variation of work that a decorator provides, and love seeing the fabrics that she and her customers have selected.

Happy Sewing!

Susan

Sale Weekend - Joining the Fray

I haven't had much success with sales in the past, but here we are again at this "biggest" shopping weekend, and what's a person to do?

When you purchase from my etsy shop this weekend (Nov 25 - Nov 28), you can choose your sale:

Free Shipping - US only - enter code BFFREESHIP

25% off - enter code BF25PCT

Enter your coupon code on checkout and Etsy shopping cart will take care of the rest!

This sale will be good on any item in the shop, but not applicable to custom requests.

Happy Shopping!

Susan

Decisions and Directions

I've been working on Sew Darn Simple for almost seven years.  Over that time I've tried many things.  I'm at that place again where I'm looking at what I'm making and trying to decide if I need to drop items or expand my inventory.

I love making the accessories - cell cases, cases and pouches of all shapes and sizes, zippers, fabric.

But I wonder do I have too many different items, or not enough?  And does it really matter?

Today's dilemma is wallets - I made some a couple of years ago, and then I've been sidetracked, so I only have a few left.  I find that I sell more of an item when I have more variety of fabrics available.  So do I keep wallets, and make more, or discount the ones I have and stop making them?

I have three styles:

1. Full size with slots for credit cards, id, bills, zippered change area, and checkbook holder.

2. Full size with slots for credit cards, id, bills and zippered change area

3. Billfold size with slots for credit cards, id, bills and zippered change area

Or should I make something brand new?

 

I'd love to hear what you think.

Thanks,

Susan



More "Special" Projects

Not that I really needed new valances in our bedroom, but hey, I got the fabric 50% off original price, then an additional 20% off that - so why not?

Not that I have fabric to make new valances and sheers for the dining room windows that I've had for something like 10 years (actually I think it's more like 6), and I still just have it - not completed valances and sheers.

But I do think they turned out pretty cute!

The color in the photo is a little off - the walls are a sage green.  The valance is purple flowers on a tannish background with green leaves.  It's an upholstery weight fabric, and I dug in my trim box and found a matchiing purple and tan cording.

Of course, now I need a new dust ruffle....

Happy Sewing!
Susan

New Item - Zip Around Kindle Case

Month ago, I started making the zip around cases for iPods, cell phones, etc., and planned to make then for both Kindles and iPads.  It's a little difficult to make cases for these items when you don't actually own one.

I made the first prototype for the Kindle case and bummed a test from a friend who owns one.  While the Kindle fit, when it was zipped it was pretty tight.  So I needed to make it just a little larger.  Then I got busy and didn't get around to making another one.  And I didn't get around to making one for the iPad yet.

Recently, a great customer asked me to make one that would hold two kindles, along with the charger/cords.  So back to the drawing board I went.

I knew for there to be room for two Kindles, that I needed to add a little depth to the case, as well as expanding the size so the zipper would move more easily.

The first prototype was ok, just a few minor tweaks, and here it is completed:

The outside has a zippered pocket that will hold the charges and cords.  The case has a hipster style strap - adjustable and detachable.  The zipper goes around three sides of the case. The inside has two lightly padded insert slots - which will house the kindles. Along with the slots being padded, the outside has two layers of padding for protection.

Since this was a special request, I don't know if I will make any more with this particular configuration, but it was good to be able to get back to a project that I'd set aside.

Happy Sewing!

Susan 





Halloween Costumes

When my two nieces were little girls, I made them Halloween costumes every year.  For some reason, I'm the one who still has most of them.  Now that their kids are getting to be the same ages, I need to give the customes to my nieces so their kids can play with them.

While I've been on this non-sewing for business kick, I made Snow White for one of the little girls.  As I got started on it, I bagan to wonder about my sanity - kind of like the year I made a fur rabbit, and sneezed for weeks.

I pushed through and now it's complete!  I think she will like it.

Now I just have to get it and all the other stuff packed up and shipped to them!

Until next time!

Susan

Let's Hear it for the boys....

With all this extra time, I've been making some dresses for my great nieces.  My youngest niece said that her little boy gets sad (he's two) when his sister gets something from me (like the apron I made for her) and there's nothing for him.  So she asked me to make him a hat.

But, you know me, I can't just make a hat.  I had a cute blue fish fabric that I bought last year when I bought fabric for dresses and aprons for the girls, along with a shirt pattern for boys.  So, why not?

Checking out the pattern, I saw that it had a traditional collar (cringe).  I can remember making things with collars in the past and always thought that was where you could just tell it was homemade, because they never seemed to turn out right.

The other thing was that, of course, it has buttons, which means that I had to make button holes.

Either my sewing skills have grown (well, I do sew a lot more than I used to) or I was just bad at it in the past, because I think it turned out pretty darn cute!

Th other thing that was funny about making this outfit - the hat was from a girls 3-6 pattern, and the hat fits on my head pretty well.  So either I have a small head, or the kids have big heads!

Stay tuned, as I have more items to make for the kids.  Hopefully my nieces will take some pictures and send me with them wearing their new outfits!

Until next time.

Susan

Extra time - Say What?

I have one show left this year, and because I sewed up a storm this summer, I don't really need to make any inventory for it.  I'll probably have an open house again too, and I need to get that scheduled.

Since I have extra time - SAY WHAT?!? - I've been doing some sewing other than for my shows and etsy shop. 

I started with new dresses for my great-nieces.  I made them some the beginning of the summer, but I had one fabric left that I bought specifically to make - so I finally got it done!

I think it's an adorable pattern - it has a v-neck, zipper back, and that little ribbon at the bottom.

I made a white fleece shrug-like jacket also, so she can wear it all seasons.  Of course, she could also always put a long sleeve shirt under it.

The dress for the other great-niece is the same fabric, but a different pattern.  I still have to make her jacket.

This dress along with some birthday presents for her older brother will be heading out with the mail later this week.

For the other great niece, I'm now also making a Snow White costume for her for Halloween.  And her little brother doesn't like when I send her something and there's nothing in the box for him, so I'll be sure and take care of that.

If I'm lucky, my nieces will send me photos of the kids in their outfits!

Until next time!

Susan

Etsy Team Craft Night

A local etsy team that I belong to (Owl & Elephant) had a team crafting night at Igloo Letterpress in Worthington last night.  We are a very casual team - we connect mostly using a google group and once in a while we see each other out and about town! 

One of our members Grace Hester (GraceHesterDesigns and GraceHesterPapers) set up this great craft night for us.

We started out our evening with everyone introducing themselves, talking about their etsy shop or craft, and what their alter-ego day job was!

Allison then talked about her business, explaining the presses, and process to us.  Each person then got to select something and print it.

I thought the spider was a little creepy, but how great it this for Halloween?

Other team members and their shops who were at the event:

ArtsiBitsi (home of the
BeckySeymourDesigns
Tsurubride (currently on sabbatical)
DaisyMaeDesigns
Cram
AdoreJules

I know I missed a couple, at my age, I'm lucky to remember anything!

Susan

Change

For anyone who does art / craft shows, you know that all kinds of things can effect how well you do - meaning how much you sell. Weather, economic situation, type of show, etc., all impact the bottom line.

But have you ever thought about change? I mean money change.

I always try to make sure that I have enough change when I go to a show.  At my show in July, however, it was a big bill day for some reason.  I was close to running out of $1 bills a couple of times, and sent Jamie out to get some - luckily there was a water vendor who seemed to be collecting more than I was handing out!  I think I came home with six $1 bills.

So, heading to my show last weekend, I made sure I had lots of $1 in case it turned into the same kind of day.  Strangely enough, most people had change, so I came home with more $1 than I'd taken. 

Just saves me from getting more change for my next show.

Susan

End of Vacation

The last segment of our vacation, before the drive home (I won't even go there!) was to finally visit the area where my husband went to camp growing up - the actual purpose of the trip!

We left the Portland area, and I decided it was at last time to visit a quilt shop! So looking at the route we were headed, we ended up going to the Calico Basket Quilt Shop in Windham. I found a few fabrics to purchase!

We traveled on to Weld, where we were staying at the Kawanhee Inn. We were a little early for checkin, so we drove around the area a little - Jamie trying to remember where things were. We found a little bakery to get a sandwich and pastry and headed to a picnic area and had a lovely view of Center Hill. I sat and relaxed after our lunch, while Jamie took the hike up the hill.

Below are some pictures from the inn.

We checked in, relaxed with our books down by the lake, then took a canoe trip down to the end of the lake in hopes of catching a moose - no such luck!

We had a drink on the porch watching the sunset, headed in for our dinner time, and ran into some folks that Jamie knew from his days at camp.

The next day, we headed over to the camp - they had made several changes since Jamie was there (ok, he admits it was too long). One of the items he found was this plaque with the names of all the campers who had passed the Junior Maine Guide program. Yes, his name is on there!

Our second night there, we had the 'New England Boiled Dinner' - lovingly called corned beef by the rest of us, and spent a great evening with Jamie's old friends that were also there.

The next day we started our trek home - just in time to avoid Hurricane Irene, which was headed in that direction.

I hope you enjoyed reading about our trip - now it will be back to business!

Susan

Continuing the Vacation

On the next part of our trip we headed back down Maine to Portland. Since this was our 'anniversary' trip, we splurged and stayed at the Black Point Inn in Scarborough for just one night.


Our arrival there started with some drama. We checked in, got our keys and the porter was taking our bags when they stopped us and said they'd put us in the wrong room - and updated everything and gave us new keys. So we get up to the room, open the door and start to get stuff set up, when we realize there was already someone in this room! Glad they weren't in the room at the time - it could have been very embarrassing all the way around! So the original room was the right one.

We got there just in time for cocktails by the pool - free wine (well, maybe not free exactly!) and cheese and crackers. A quick stroll down to the water, then some relaxation in the Adirondack chairs until people with wound up kids joined us.


We dressed up a little for dinner (it was included in our package also) - since we were celebrating early! Breakfast the next morning was included too, and then we headed off to check out some of Portland.

We headed to Old Port, checked out some of the shops, which were many and varied - some of your typical tourist type of shops, and then some really nice art shops.

We headed out to the Portland Head Light,then headed back to Scarborough to check in at the Higgins Beach Inn for our last night on the coast.

We headed to the beach, it was late enough in the afternoon that I wasn't too concerned about getting a sunburn, and spent a little time there relaxing, reading our books, and watching the waves.

Dinner and breakfast there are the inn were both great, too!

Stayed tuned for part 4 - this will be the best part!

Susan

Vacation Tales - Part 2

Our vacation continued from the Adirondacks to Maine via Vermont and New Hampshire. Little bit of a slow drive through the Adirondacks, especially when they close the one road for a parade.

Our next stop was in Southwest Harbor and Acadia National Park. We spent a couple of nights at the Cranberry Hill Inn, which we loved. We got there somewhat late the first night, so just went up the street to get some dinner and relax. We had planned to go whale watching the next day, but the fog didn't cooperate with us. Instead we did some shopping in Bar Harbor (yes, I did buy t-shirts for my great nieces and nephews), along with some other novelty gifts.

We decided to head back to the Loop Road in Acadia and stop at some additional places we missed the first time, and along the way, we ran across signs for an arts & crafts show, so we had to stop there! Wonderful works of art!



We headed to the lobster pound for dinner that evening, and had another relaxing night at the inn. I started reading 'The Help' - I can't even tell you the last book I read before that.

What's next? Stay tuned.

Susan

Vacation Tales - Part 1

Hello Friends! The next few posts are going to be about the vacation we just took - not too much about sewing or crafting or my regular stuff.

This September is our 10th wedding anniversary. So we thought we should go somewhere special (not that it's not special, but we normally spend our vacation with my husband's parents at their place in Northern Michigan). We had originally talked about going to Hawaii since that's where we went for our honeymoon, but I've become somewhat averse to flying. That's entirely different story

My husband spent many years of his youth at a boys summer camp in Maine. I've heard endless stories about it, and met some of the friends that he made there, and we've talked many times about going to Maine, so we decided that's what we would do for our special year.


Our trip started out with an overnight stay at a friend's cabin (she calls it a camp) in the Adirondacks. It was about half way between home and our first Maine destination, and a really lovely place. Neither of us had been to the Adirondacks before, and we enjoyed seeing the area. The ducks came by in the morning to say hello, and we headed on our way to Maine.

I will say that not a lot changes between us when we drive - when I'm the navigator, and he's driving, he doesn't listen any better than when we are at home.

Stay tuned for where we went next!
Susan

Vacation Purse

Sorry it's been so long since I've written - it was a busy summer. We just got back today from a week or so in Maine - we drove, so that's why I say 'or so'.

I thought I needed a new purse for vacation. I was still using the one I made last fall and it was too big to start with, so in my opinion, way to big for vacation.

I picked out a brown patterned print, and made a small purse with an adjustable strap, a small zippered pouch and a new wallet from the fabric.

I wanted to use the purse myself to see if it was a size/style that I would want to make and sell at shows and from my etsy shop. Overall, I liked the purse. I think the strap needs to be a little sturdier, and perhaps attach from the top rather than the sides.

I liked the wallet too - it was basic with a zipper area for change, a slot for cash, and several slots for credit cards, etc.

A few modifications and you may see these start to appear in my shop!

Until next time,

Susan

Backwards Weekend?

Just a short recap of my weekend show. I was in Chagrin Falls OH, for Art by the Falls. It's a lovely town with a real artsy feel. I did this show several years ago and it was an awesome show for me then.

Of course, I kept checking the weather forecast (as if that's ever right!) for the few days before the show. Scattered thunderstorms for Friday (setup) and Saturday - the first day of the show. Cooler and sunny on Sunday.

Most of the times, shows are busier on Saturday, than Sunday. Not so with this show this year - Saturday the crowds were much sparcer than I recalled or expected - I thought maybe that 'scattered thunderstorms' prediction was keeping them away. Sunday was a much larger crowd, at least early in the day.

Credit card sales - do most other people experience this? Normally, my Saturday credit cards runs 20-30% of the total sales, and on Sunday it can creep up closer to 50%. I'm not sure what was going on this weekend - but my Saturday credit cards were 60% of my total - crazy! Sunday was about 30%.

So - as I say - it was a backwards weekend!

By the way, the storms on Saturday never happened where we were. It sprinkled just as we were closing down for the day. And Sunday - well, the sun didn't appear until we were leaving - and cooler - you bet - I don't think it got above 62 or 63 degrees. Glad I took a pair of jeans and a jacket along!



Until next time!
Susan

It's show time!

I had my first show of the season this past weekend (ok, I did a couple of small shows in April), and overall it was a pretty good weekend. This is the fourth year that I've done the Delaware Arts Festival, and it's been a good show for me the last couple of years.

The weather was a little crazy this year - 80 on Saturday, a short (1/2 hour or so) thunderstorm with some pretty heavy rain, and 50 on Sunday, pretty much a drizzle and more all day, with a few dry spells.

Here is a picture of my booth on Sunday morning - I see my orange price signs are pretty visible!

Given the crazy weather, I was really happy with my sales for the weekend.

Next show is Art by the Falls in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, June 11 & 12. I'd better get sewing!

Susan

Weekend Wrap-Up

I had a show this weekend (Friday evening and Saturday) in Athens, Ohio at the Dairy Barn. I spent four years in Athens attending Ohio University, so I was a little excited to go back and spend the weekend.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from the show. The Dairy Barn is a wonderful venue for setting up, tearing down, and amount of space per booth. I thought the selection of vendors was excellent - all had very nice items, and many of them have done the shows at the Dairy Barn many times.

My sales weren't too great, though, so I doubt if I will go back.

Since it's about a 90 mile drive (each way) to Athens, and Friday night wasn't over until 8pm, I decided I didn't really want to drive back and forth. It was Mom's weekend at OU, though, so there weren't any rooms left by the time I decided that I wanted to try this show. We ended up deciding to make a weekend of it and got a cabin in Hocking Hills. The cabin was nice, the hot tub was awesome - what a way to relax after a day at a show!

For those of you who have heard me tell about Mimi cat, you know she's pretty needy for a cat. We really were only going to be gone for 2 nights - the Husband came home after work on Friday and made sure she had enough food for the weekend - and we got back home just before noon today (Sunday). You would think we could leave her alone for such a short time.

Apparently not. At some point, she threw up IN her food bowl - so I'm not sure how long she was without food - but she acted like she was starved when we got home.

Poor Mimi cat.

The car is all unloaded and my inventory put away. My book keeping is done for the event, and so now I have the rest of the day to work on - something!

Until next time.

Susan

Re-organization lost

You may recall that I got on a reorganization project the beginning of the year. You also may recall that it seemed to stall out - I got about half of what I wanted to get done - or maybe not even half.

One of the problems I had was the the shelving I bought from IKEA had a couple of items out of stock when I originally purchased it. So the parts that I needed finally came in, and I got the drawers put together.

And here they are:

I did manage to get a "few" files into the filing cabinet, but most of them are still in a box across the hall.

This may be the only thing in the drawers for a while:

I won't even talk about the stuff under my cutting table....

Until next time,

Susan

Zip Around Case for Kindle 3G

When I started making the zip around case for your ipod, iphone and other cell phones and electronic gadgets, I said I was also going to make them in larger sizes for your kindle and other e-readers, and also for ipads, etc.

This morning was the time of promise!

The exterior of the case has the vertical zippered section (unpadded) and the detachable wristlet strap and the zipper around three sides of the case.

The inside features several pocket sections - on the left side, there is a fabric pcoket and a netting pocket.

On the right there is a pocket for storing your kindle when not in use, and then each corner has tabs to hold the kindle in place when you want to use it.

The case is padded with a heavy weight fleece, and there is a waterproof barrier in between.

I don't personally own a kindle, so once I find someone willing to let me use theirs for a photo, I will get that picture and list this in my etsy shop.

Next on the agenda will be the case for the ipad, so stay tuned!

Susan

Of all the things I should be doing.....

Making a purse for myself usually isn't too close to the top of the list.

I have signed up for more craft shows this year, so I should be building inventory. I have a several room project for a good friend of mine, that I need to get done. Just today I got a call from another friend looking to have some home decor stuff done.

So last night, rather than doing what I needed to do, I made a new purse for myself. I'm carrying an oversized patchwork purse that I made last fall. I just thought it was time for something else.



It's short and wide - I'm not going to make any comparisons....

Love the colorful print!

Susan

March On!

February was one of those months where there was something going on every weekend. I looked at my March calendar and nothing special was scheduled other than yesterday where I got together with a group of friends to celebrate my birthday (it was in February).


So I started out this past week thinking I was going to get all kinds of things done.

Alas, it was not to be. Somehow my week just disappeared and I didn't spend any quality time sewing.

The one thing I did finish was the February angel project that I'm doing for Dee (twitter). You can see her blog where she posts each month's project and final results!


Here's my February angel:

I sure hope the rest of March is kinder to my sewing time than this week was - I've scheduled two craft shows in April!

Until next time,

Susan

Challenge - Complete!

As you know, I got 10 items cut from the single yard (actually it was 35 inches once I evened the ends up) and I finally got them all sewn up.

Here's a composite picture of them all together:

Look for them to be listed in my etsy shop soon!

That was fun, but I know that a single yard of fabric doesn't let me get even one of each item made that I keep in my inventory, so I'll have to be selective with the smaller cuts to get the 'right' items made!

Happy Sewing,

Susan

One Yard Challenge - Cutting

So, I think now that I'm trying to decide what all to make from this yard of fabric, why I started buying two yards when I'm not sure what I'm going to do with a piece.

I can't get everything that I want to from a single yard. Here are the ten items I did get cut from this yard:

Lanyard

Large Cell phone case with flap

Large Cell phone case with zipper

Wrap Around zipper gadget case

Regular Box pouch

Small Box Pouch

Zipper wallet/change purse

Mini pack purse (hipster)

Round top flat bottom wristlet

Small Flat Bottom zipper case

Here is what's left:

Not much that's usable. I have containers of scraps like this - anyone interested?

Next time I'll show the selection of finished items.

Susan

One yard challenge

I make a variety of items for my etsy shop and for craft shows. Often when I work with a fabric, I make several items from that fabric. Depending on how much fabric there is, what the pattern is, how I feel that day, and what Mimi cat thinks (ok, that part isn't really true) I may get from 5-10 of my smaller items from it.

So today I am challenging myself to see how many items I can get from a one yard cut with as little waste as possible.

I'll make a list of the items that I've been making, and work on some cutting layouts and then go from there. Should be fun!

Just to clarify, the one yard will be the exterior fabric only, I will use a coordinating fabric for linings.

Here is the fabric I selected to work with.

Check back later this week to see how it worked out.

Susan

Zip Around Success

I made the first prototype of the zip around case back at the end of December. I've been using it for my iTouch and love it. I keep the earbuds in one side and the ipod in the other side. If I plan to go anywhere and need to include the USB, I can include that in the outside pocket.

I made a few more (three to be exact) until I felt like I had a good solid process, and I did list the three prototypes in my etsy shop at a reduced price ($15). The regular price on this size will be $22. Before I could get the first one listed at regular price, I sold two!

My next plan is to make this in a larger size for ereaders and perhaps iPads. I also plan to make them more in a regular wallet style - large enough for unfolded paper bills, a couple of credit card slots, etc.

Let me know if there are options that you would like to see, and specific fabrics also!

Susan

Sewing Help

I've been alternating sewing and the re-organization of my sewing room, and it's been exhausting.



Mimi cat is worn out from the entire process.

Susan

Walker Basket / Bag

I've made a couple of bags for my mom for her walker over the past few years. This pretty green one is the most current. I think it's the prettiest one I've made for her.



My husband's aunt recently began using a walker and my mother-in-law asked me to make something for her also. They wanted something that was more like a basket - you can't see it from this picture, but there are pockets on each end that can hold a can of pop or bottle of water.
There is a little change pocket on the outside and then inside is a zippered pocket and a divided flap pocket.

I hope it works out for her.

Susan

Supplies - Organized!

Most of my 'supply' items have now been organized. By supplies, I mean metal and plastic rings, slides, hooks, snaps, clips and buttons, to name a few. It also includes thread, trim, and beads.

The top half of the middle section is where I have these items organized. I purchased some inexpensive plastic stacking baskets from Big Lots and separated each item or category of items into these, along with some regular lidded plastic containers.

The bottom of this section will eventually have two drawers (the drawer fronts were out of stock when I bought the shelving) and hopefully there will be enough room in those drawers for the zippers and ribbon. Above the drawers and below the supplies, I've moved some of my pattern and other reference books.

I still have one section of shelving left to get organized, then it's on to the other side of the room and, most importantly, under the cutting table!

Stay tuned!

Susan