Occupational Hazard

Who would have known that handbag creation could be such a dangerous occupation! My poor right hand is a complete mess. I've been doing a lot of hand sewing to complete the flowers that I've been adding to some of my bags. Last Friday, I shoved a needle under my thumbnail. And, I'm not talking about the small sharp end. I mean the large dull eye of the needle. By the time I went to bed on Friday night, it was throbbing! I had to take a couple ibuprofen so I could fall asleep!

Yesterday I poked a hole in the tip of my thumb. I didn't even notice until I found a spot of blood on the button I was sewing on. Had to scrap the button, find a band-aid and make a new one. Today I found a sore spot on my middle finger, too.

Note to self: Buy a freakin' thimble!!

Featured Seller: Sweet Bonny

I've been meaning to post about one of my favorite Etsy sellers for a few days now and haven't gotten it done. So, I scrolled through my past purchases and found Sweet Bonny. I bought these cards a while back and love, love, love them!Unfortunately, I only have one left! So, I've been stalking the Sweet Bonny shop for days trying to decide what I want next. Here are some of my favorites:

And, no matter what cards I get, I am definitely adding on a peacock bookmark!

I just love the artwork on all her things, and I'm all about the bright, bold colors. How am I going to decide?

I've been tagged!

I was tagged by JessiLynn for this fun little blurb. I'm going to play even though I hate to reveal my middle name!

Here are the rules:1. You have to post these rules before you give the facts.2. Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of their middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.3. At the end of your blog-post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag.

Introverted - Now, people who know me really well would probably not say that I'm shy, however, I am truly an introvert. In fact, my personality test results prove it! I am horrible at small talk and am not one to initiate conversation with a stranger. I'm working to improve on that! But, once you get to know me -- watch out! You can't get me to shut up!

Loyal - When I make a friend, they are usually a friend for life. I still remember many of the good friends I had as a kid in elementary school and love to find out what they have been up to. I am also quick to defend people or companies or places that I feel a connection to.

Easily-amused - It doesn't take much to make me smile. That is probably why I love playing with my son's Webkinz. (Okay, I admit that I have one of my own, too!) It also explains why I bought this for my sister's new baby!

Nerdy - I am a total bookworm and all around nerd. I'm interested in some of the silliest things that other people just don't get.

Energetic - I truly cannot sit still. It is impossible for me to just sit and watch television. I have to keep my hands busy with sewing or reading or some other project.

So, there you have it! My middle name is "Ilene". I am going to tag:

Brandi
Sweet Spice
Knitstyle
MJDBoutique
SimplyShell

Preparing for craft shows

I am planning to sell at three craft shows this fall - Berean Country Fair on October 13, Halstead Fine Arts & Crafts Festival on October 20 and See 'N Sell on November 17. My sister will be joining me at most if not all of the shows, and we are really looking forward to each of them.

Our goal for this year is to make our booth look more professional and eye-catching. All three shows are indoors, so, fortunately, we don't need to worry about a tent. We have been discussing and buying all sorts of display items.

One of the main things we wanted was table cloths that all matched! I searched and searched for heavy duty polyester knit fabric to use. I found a couple resources, but then on Saturday, my mom and I were shopping at Sam's. We found packs of three restaurant style table cloths for about $22! These were huge cloths, too, so they were a great deal. I also bought some dark pink knit fabric at JoAnn's to use for draping on our display.

I've been seeing the neatest pennant banners on people's booths and decided that I want to make my own. I bought about five different coordinating print fabrics and some bias tape at JoAnn's this weekend. I'm hoping to get to that project before October!

Hobby Lobby had floral stems on sale last week for 50% off, so I bought a handful of bright colored long-stemmed Gerbera daisies to use for additional decoration.

Probably the thing I am most excited about is that I have signed up for Propay so I can accept credit cards at the shows. I am very curious to see how much this will help our sales.

Hopefully, I am planning far enough ahead, for once! I'm sure I will still be scrambling at the last minute!

My new nephew!

Introducing nephew #5 for me! Layton Todd was born last night (8/16) at 10:21 pm. He weighed in at 8 lbs 6 oz and measured 19.5 inches long. He such a little angel!

Although his aunt told him he could call his new cousin L.T., my son insists that he is going to call him "Happy Feet".

Book Review

Last weekend I finished The Crafts Business Answer Book by Barbara Brabec. I was really pleased with the information that I was able to gather from this book. It is set up as a reference book. Every topic is listed in alphabetical order, so it's quite easy to go through and find information on a particular topice. However, it is also a book that can be read from cover to cover, which is what I did. (I will admit to skipping over some topics that didn't pertain to my situation.)

Brabec's style is quite conversational, and she provides a lot of practical advice for anyone who is getting started in the craft business. The book covers topics ranging from marketing to accounting to legal issues to pricing and shipping. There is a lot of general advice, but she does provide many resources so that a reader can further investigate various topics on her own.

I had several "a-ha!" moments as I read this book, and it prompted me to take several actions to make my business more professional. I would recommend this book for someone who is getting started in the craft business. Many of the questions answered were questions I didn't even know I had!

Happy Mail Day!

I am a complete mail junkie! There is nothing I love more than getting mail. I get excited about all kinds of mail - email, junk mail, voice mail (except work ones). My favorite though is definitely snail mail! I got four packages today. Including one I'd almost forgotten I ordered.These knitted baby booties arrived from Knit Style. They are absolutely so adorable and soft. My sister is scheduled to be induced on Thursday, so I'm expecting my new nephew soon. These are going to look so sweet on those teeny tiny feet!

These burpcloths also arrived today from jr designs. Also a gift for the little guy! My sister already has a little girl, but I know she needs some stuff that isn't pink. These will be perfect!

My other two packages contained three back issues of Adorn Magazine which I've already flipped through, Sew Easy Bags by Linda Lee and the newest Jasper Fforde book, First Among Sequels. So, I've definitely got some reading to do!

I'm still waiting on a couple more packages from Etsians that I ordered late last week. It should be a good mail week!