Foody Friday

I don't actually know why I've listing a number of button bags at http://www.etsy.com/shop/onceinthenorth2 with foody titles. Maybe its because I've built up an appetite working with children all afternoon. Or perhaps it's something to do with it being a fabulous Friday....who knows? Not me! It's probably because I just love eating-

  Nom! Nom! Ice- Cream lovelies  I've listed these buttons in bags of 30g and 100g. I've discovered that 30g button bags are my best sellers at craft fairs- not everyone wants a big bulky bag and that's why I've decided to list them in my shop. I really love the pastel sugaryness of these buttons.

I'm soooo proud of this photograph. It may only be a pic of buttons but I do wrestle with the camera as I'm no natural photographer. I've definitely captured the rich chocolate and coffee colours of this scrumptious button bag. I'm also selling these buttons in bags of 30g and 100g.

I think I will now go and enjoy some real food, I have made myself very hungry!

Today is a day for.......

Coordinating the most beautiful fabrics I can find.....

 .........collecting ribbons and trims in contrasting colours and tones (lots of yummy vintage buttons).....and of course using much savvy design know how!

Today is a day for bag making! I'm so excited that I am dancing as I'm posting this blog.


I will return with pics of my finished baggy delights!

Lets make- Monday

Today is a making day, it has to be, I have no choice!!!!!!
After being filled with so much self doubt last week and having a right old but much needed big twine, I now feel that things are starting to take place.

Wonderful things have happened of late- I have been approached by a number of business' to sell my products at Trade, which I am happy to do but more of that another time.

This weekend was a fantastic weekend! My self esteem was given an enormous boost at a lovely craft fair. To start with the organisers were such lovely and warm hearted people, they made the day a positive one and everyone was in a jolly, festive mood. I stood and chatted all day to many interesting people................................and I sold lots!!! In fact I almost sold out!!! Hence "Lets make Monday" as I have two more craft fairs coming up- eek! The best feeling for me is that because I was busy during the week leading up to the fair I didn't have chance to reduce my prices, so everything went for my original asking price. YAY!!  Everyone I spoke to appreciated "Handmade" and the fact that what I do is not mass produced. Finally!!

So yesterday was a mad dash for stash to the nearest haberdashery open on a Sunday in Carlisle! Not that I'm complaining because these places are my therapy, I really wish I had the money to own one. MMMMM! (Dreaming)

Nom! Nom! What a wonderful sight? My glimpsers can't quite believe it- buttons, fabric, colour and chocolate coins!!!! I especially love the colours of the zips, I sold out of bags so these will come in handy.

I would like to say thank you to the ladies from Hebden Bridge who were full of sewing knowledge, and to the lady who I think would have bought everything on my stall. You are rare gems!

Here's a picture I thought I would just throw in for pleasure. This is the view opposite my house this morning, it's very cold but beautiful and I feel very lucky.

Ok coffee then work. I think I am going to be glued to my sewing machine for the next few days.

So here we are, so close to the big day and a mounting to climb before we get there. Today I've decided to step back, take a good look at what I've made for all my events coming up, see what I've still to finish and write a list. Gulp! I hate writing lists. I once wrote a list that was so long I went into melt down and I decided never to write one again. But because I am extremely busy I fear I have no choice.




So far I've made.......wonderful mini/mini festive bunting. I love all of my Christmas fabrics so I made some bunting using a variety of each of the delicious fabrics! Nom! Nom! I do love my fabric.

I've made slightly larger bunting- with pom-poms and without!! It took me two hours to sew 16 pom-poms by hand on two sets, so as you can see it got the better of me and the third set doesn't have any- this does make it slightly cheaper though!

I couldn't resist making a few table runners. More pom-poms here and lots of applique!

No pom-poms here and this gorgeous table runner is slightly less decorative. My big problem here is that although I am trying to be so organised, with regards to my sewing, my house is getting very neglected. I am hoping to list this in one of my on-line shops which means a very large tidy up so no clutter is in view of the pics. Time is running out but I will do it!

Here is my beautiful collection of finished Ogee textile decorations. I love these and I really hope they sell-my very own design you see so I am extremely proud of them! I'm hoping they get snapped up at some of my craft events but I also want to list a few in my shops- not sure which ones though?

A few unfinished decorations, baubles and trees, in a little piles with possible button embellishments. I do enjoy sorting!

 Once I've sorted which buttons I'm going to use everything gets popped into its own little bag. This is a great tip I've learned from other designers along the way. I used to keep all of my unfinished makes in various untidy piles but no longer and now I'm super efficient!!

A vintage hat box full of finished decorations (sorry you are unable to see the hat box from this photo but you can just make out the lining- mmm think I will take some pics of these). Hooray! This is quite an achievement considering only this weekend we took the ceilings down in the back of the house so that we could install insulation. My daughter has also been off school with a cold, she is 13 now but still needs mum. I also sewed my finger with my sewing machine yesterday I have never achieved this before, nor do I want to do it again. It didn't actually hurt....at the time,  it did however make a very strange puncturing sort of sound! I'll leave it at that.

So now that I've made these things my list will include- labels, more self-seal bags as I use these when I'm selling small items, maybe order more business cards, take photos for my on-line shops, label and pack everything for craft fairs, invest in some more ribbon, order large envelopes ........too much!


I've also been asked to supply my items to Trade and I have to make up some samples within the next few weeks. Please wish me luck!

Phew! Time to catch up.

Hello! I'm back, but only very briefly. I have been so busy lately well I should really say sew busy. For the past few months I have spent every waking minute (or it has felt like it)  pinning, cutting, sewing,  doing applique projects and then embellishing everything with buttons or ribbons......I really put my back into it. Literally! I ended up with the worst back ache I have ever encountered. It was all in honour of this wonderful craft fair that I was privileged to be part of- Nostalgia Meets Design!

I'm sorry to say that this is the only image I have from the event. As organised as I try to be such as blogging about craft events beforehand to drum up some interest, when it came down to it I simply ran out of time and steam. When the day came it was actually a relief to sit down for the entire day. I put so much effort into producing beautiful good quality work that I think I wore myself out. Anyway I'll stop twining because it paid off I sold lots of lovely things and I've been asked to supply to Trade! Which is the direction I want to go in.

Here is a taster of what I was selling

A sexy festive table runner! Ooh! La! La!

Lovely lavender pillows. ZZZZZZ!

Funky Gingerbread Men decorations! I know a few other designers are making these but this is my version!

Christmas Tree decorations- these went down very well

Pom-pom bunting.

I also made a few kits basically because every time I do a craft event I always hear somebody saying "Oh! You can make that yourself" This really winds me up! I'm convinced these types of people never go on to actually make anything, or if they try they'll never produce the quality that I strive for!! Not that any body said it at the Nostalgia Meets Design or NMD as us in the know call it. HA! HA! Thats a joke!

I sold Christmas Tree kits and Gingerbread Men kits.

Here we have my Christmas goody bags. They are packed with buttons, bows, a string of eight pom-poms and festive shiny sequins! I'm selling them here  

http://folksy.com/items/978341-Christmas-Supplies-Goody-Bag-?shop=yes

I shall try to blog more often, as Toyah once said "It's a mystery to me...." how some folks manage to sew, make, produce, then list it all in their on-line shops, blog about their new creations and find the time to be a parent!!! Answers on a post card please!!!! 

Sewing Circles

Craft fairs are looming upon me once again so today I'm sewing circles.

I use many bird motifs in my work and I enjoy incorporating Russian Doll images but I am so incredibly passionate about colour and this is why I have most fun sewing circles. I would have to say that I love colour so much my that all my crafting and textiles projects are based around the relationships of colours. Even down to the smallest item I make I have to use the correct colour combination of fabrics and buttons. I'm perhaps more obsessed with using colours than buttons. Its a wholesome obsession! Right?

I find circles a great way to experiment and combine those tones and shades that you thought might not work well. But what an amazing, zingy feeling you get when it actually does. It sends ripples right through my body sometimes. If it doesn't look so hot there's no need to despair you might just need to cut out one more circle in a different fabric either patterned or textural to bring it altogether. I have a lot of confident using colour but I'm drawn to the brightest oranges, pinks and reds, it's quite a challenge for me to use subtle greens and blues or muted beiges but I get stuck in and give it a go. I also find sewing circles to be very relaxing and therapeutic. ZZZZZZZZZZZZ!

I've also been experimenting with mushrooms! Well felt ones. I've had so much fun that mushrooms might become the new circles, they're definitely going to 'crop' up in my textile projects!