My Year in Craft 2010

1. In my twelve months of crafting, my crafty self made all these...
I could check my sales book, but can't be bothered getting up! I'll estimate 33 skirts, 10 dresses, 100 fabric postcards, 70 W Class Cushions, one maternity top, one Jump Rope dress and one cloth book for my darling baby girl.

2. If my year was a colour it would be...
Pink for girls.

3. This year I spent way too many craft hours...
I don't have an answer for that! I was as efficient as my conditions allowed.

4. This year I wish I'd had more craft hours for...
Making presents for friends. I've only started on Christmas presents for friends this week! And I've just realised I didn't take a photo of the amazing Trash Jacket I made for my bestie before giving it to her yesterday. Kirsten, I need photos!

5. My proudest craft moment of the year was...
Joining Olive Grove and being the best I could be, as far as pregnancy and a newborn allowed. Also, having my cushions appear in Frankie.


6. My biggest craft disaster was...
The accidental bleaching of a tram cushion. I still shudder when I think of it.


7. This year I had stalls at/visited this many markets...
Not many! After the two Northside Makers Markets in Feb and March I had my own stall at Craft Hatch in... July? I can't even find a reference to it on my blog! My last one for the year was a Northside Makers collective stall at Gallery Market in December. Mainly I focused on Olive Grove (and discovered retail is a much better sales avenue for my work than markets).


8. My most enjoyable market was...
My most enjoyable market visiting experience was the Northside Makers trip to Daylesford Makers Market. Such fun!

9. My best handmade purchase/present/swap/acquisition was...
My best purchase was this cushion by Villa Hunter, from the Daylesford Makers Market:

And the best gift has to be Baby Amy's quilt, made by her grandma (pictured with equally wonderful ted by Aunty Christine):


10. After this year I swear I'll never again...
Hmm. I don't have any huge craft regrets. I swear I'll never again return to my craft business (and working in a shop) six weeks after having a baby, but as long as my family size plans hold true that's not going to be an issue!

11. Next year I'm determined to...
Be far my focussed in my 'range', which is easy as I won't be striving to have something for everyone in a retail environment. I've managed to secure a consignment arrangement for my cushions at Olive Grove and will keep doing online sales but anything more than that depends on what paid employment I undertake. I plan to stock up on 'cushion blanks' during the year in preparation for next Christmas - that was a winning strategy this year. I'm determined to make more for my children, rellies and friends.

12. But I'll probably do this instead...
Try to turn every new idea into a money-spinner! I'm incorrigible.

Leave a comment if you answer these questions on your blog - I'd love to read about your year in craft.

Drawing from my surroundings

(It's meant to be the one in the middle.)

Miss Amelia's Christmas present

In only three days I managed to make Amelia a cloth book similar to the one I took a month to make for Jack. This was achieved by the use of novelty quilting prints rather than assembling every detail of every picture myself, my awareness of Vliesofix/Easyfix/Heat'n'Bond rather than turning the edges of every piece (no matter how tiny or round) and by machine stitching the edges (because I don't trust Vliesofix in the hands of babies) rather than hand appliqueing with an embroidery hoop and floss.

Method analysis over; time for the reveal!









My French knot eye isn't really positioned wonkily, it's just been pushed the wrong way.
I'm proud that everyone's hair is made from tram cushion offcuts.





The garden is possibly my favourite page. I've had that piece of flower fabric for about twelve years.


I bought this piece of linen blend fabric (Kokka?) from... either Elena of Buttonlicious or Lou of Buttons by LouLou. I've forgotten!

Hope your Christmas was beautiful and full of love.

Amy likes licking Lilly

Today twelve week old Amy met Dolly. Dolly is a Lilly doll by Nini & Wink. Dolly's arm was a good substitute for Dadda's finger when he wanted it back. Dolly is made of corduroy which, according to Amy, feels just great to lick.

Hubby T stayed home from work today to distract the kids while I sewed together one last batch of cushions for Olive Grove before Christmas. Didn't quite get them finished due to also having numerous appointments, but I managed to spend five daytime hours in the sewing room when I'd normally only snatch 90 minutes. Tomorrow I'll finish them and in the evening I'll take them into the shop. One has been pre-sold and if the past week is anything to go by, the other two will find homes before the big day.

And then - I get to sew a Christmas present for my baby girl! I'm aiming to make another cloth book to go with the one I made Jack for his first Christmas.









Think I can manage it in three days? At least this time I'm aware of the existence of Vliesofix/Easyfix/Heat'n'Bond.

W Class Cushions on indie.com.au

Thanks Beky for pointing out my W Class Cushion in indie.com.au's Mens Gift Guide!



Looking at the date, this was published two weeks ago. If I'd known it was there I could have changed the listing before now to say I can still fill custom orders for this design before Christmas - d'oh! In any case I'm tickled pink to be included.

Weekend continued - with animation!

I carved a very tardy Hallowe'en pumpkin. Didn't bother making it thin enough for candlelight to shine through as we didn't have any means of lighting our candles.


Here's our silly children again. (Two out of three are mine!)
(This gif is moving in time with the Daft Punk song I'm listening to.)

Weekend

Amelia and Jack with Cousin Emma in the middle

Making Tracks, or, An Insight Into Life With Baby & Business

(Baby Amy is asleep; a chance to share my news.)

Last week as I caught the bus to do a shift at Olive Grove, two children in tow, I thought about how glad I was I won't have to keep doing this mad juggling act next year. No, I'm not giving away the children. But I am finishing at Olive Grove after Christmas.

I actually made the decision months ago, before Baby Amy was born. The more worn out I was by late pregnancy, the more I realised how much harder balancing full-time parenting with designing/sewing/shopkeeping was going to be once my new baby arrived. Being part of Olive Grove has been wonderful for my business - in my best month, after paying my shop rent and business expenses I was able to pay for our annual car rego and still had cash left over. But that level of profit and success is something I have to sacrifice for now.

Growing my business as part of the shop next year would mean having to put both littlies in childcare for at least one full day a week. While I could see a benefit in that for Jack I'm not willing to hand over tiny Amelia, and I'd be stretched to afford paying for two kids in childcare. Any parent paying for childcare while self-employed, as opposed to working for a guaranteed wage, is crossing their fingers that they're earning more during those hours than they're paying to have the kids taken care of.

And to be honest, I really do want some time off. Returning to work at the shop with a six week old baby in the sling has felt like repeatedly hitting myself in the face with a shovel. Even when Jack can stay home with his dad or a babysitter the stress of preparing to take a baby to work makes me sweat. It's never been as bad as I've anticipated; I'm blessed with a very calm baby and customers who are comfortable being served by a woman as she breastfeeds. Nevertheless the anxiety begins about 24 hours before I have to leave the house.

(I am breastfeeding while I type this.)

I still think 'returning to work' when I did was the best option for me, given the time of year. My tram cushions are very popular at Christmas and if they were suddenly invisible this year people would assume they weren't around any more, and wouldn't look for them next Christmas either. I've put a lot into my beloved cushions and don't want to take a giant leap backward. All of you who've put countless hours into building a business from the fruits of your creative imagination will understand that feeling.

I spent all but two weeks of my 'maternity leave' preparing cushion blanks to be turned into custom orders and that's really paid off - I'm delivering orders in less than a week and am completely on top of my business sewing workload. When I tot up the sales I get big green dollar signs in my eyes like a Looney Tunes character. But I keep thinking back to a conversation I recently had with another working mum winding up her handmade business, in which she said, "I don't want to always be grumpy at my children for wanting my attention." Both my children need a lot of attention from me at this time, and I want to give it to them happily. There have been a number of times that I've been sitting on the couch, gently rocking my baby to sleep, and I've thought, "I really should be getting those orders done."

(I took a break to change Amelia's nappy and took a cushion order by phone at the same time.)

Of course I do have plans for my business in the future. After a couple months off I'm going to look into retail options that don't involve working in a shop or trying to make back a level of return on big weekly rent. I'm probably going to pare down my range, which has been all over the place this year chasing the myriad opportunities at Olive Grove, and just do the cushions for a while. They're what the world wants from me (along with raising my children to be useful, non-delinquent members of society)! Wholesaling still isn't right for me but when I search hard enough I do find rare opportunities suited to my two-hours-a-day-while-the-children-sleep business.

(Amelia is sitting in her rocker next to my computer, watching me type.)

This is about four times longer than I originally intended. I'll wrap it up by saying that when I'm at the shop this Sunday I'll be marking down most of my remaining stock drastically. Olive Grove closes for the year on Christmas Eve so if you want a Mrs Beckinsale bargain you'll have to visit before then. Baby Amy and I will be in the shop on the two Sundays before Christmas and the afternoon of Thursday 16th if you want to drop in and say hi.

Are you still reading? I'll say goodbye to you now and rock my fussy baby to sleep.

Baby Amy helps out on the Northside Makers stall at Gallery Market

A Reticule for the MIL

I gave up on my plans for a handmade Christmas this year. When I added up the time it was going to take doing custom cushion orders, working at Olive Grove and - now I remember - taking care of a toddler and an infant, it became clear the handmade presents weren't going to happen. I hang my head in embarrassment at failing the Supermum test. Maybe I can make up the points on people's birthdays.

Then I remembered that my mother-in-law's birthday is Christmas Eve. I only get one chance a year to impress her, and I do so want to be her favourite daughter-in-law (out of a field of one). What's more, she's in the UK so I need to mail her present a few weeks before Christmas to make sure it arrives in good time.

This called for a quick but hopefully impressive looking craft project!

I remembered that last year she hinted that she'd like a pouch she could tie around her waist to hold her ID and other bits while doing hospital visits - she's a hospital chaplain. If I could make her one it'd be just lovely. I didn't have time to do it last year and I'm not quite sure how I managed this year, but here it is.


I started with the reticule pattern from the book Jane Austen's Sewing Box. At first I thought I'd hand sew it in front of the telly of an evening, but as the postage deadline loomed I chucked that idea in favour of the sewing machine. After cutting out the recommended pieces I found they were going to make a much bigger bag than the one photographed in the book, and as I read the instructions six times over it dawned on me the method was rubbish.

Okay, I can fully accept that in a time of hand sewing and no overlockers the method given was the best way to make a drawstring bag, and this book is all about doing things the old way. My big problem is the misuse of geometric terminology. The pieces for the bag included a 50cm wide piece which would be sewn into a tube to provide the body of the bag, and a 40cm square piece which would be used for the base. But then we encounter this direction:

Using the fabric for the base, cut out a 25cm circle (the circumference is 25cm).

I read it over a number of times. I got out a tape measure and made a circle with a 25cm circumference - ie, loop the 25cm mark around so it meets the start of the tape measure. This was to be the base of a bag with a circumference of 50cm (less seam allowances)? Looking at the photo and further directions the base circle is meant to be pleated to match the bottom of the bag body. We need a circle with a diameter of 25cm. How on earth did that get past the pattern testers and proof readers? My guess is they questioned an initial submission of "cut out a 25cm circle" and so the author added the incorrect explanation in brackets. I slap my forehead in exasperation.

At this point I turfed the book, cut out pieces for a much smaller bag and made it up as I went along, mentally referring to lessons learned from the one Nicole Mallalieu pattern I've used. Maybe every other pattern in the Austen book is excellent, I don't know. I will try another one some day but unfortunately I can't recommend the reticule instructions. I feel guilty for spurning something with Austen's name on it.


I used my one piece of Ink & Spindle fabric for the front of the bag and made up the rest of the width with a natural linen/cotton blend. I find natural linen very boring so I used a blue and pink carnationy print for the base, with light-weight fusible interfacing to make it up to a similar weight as the printed linen. I figure grandmothers like carnations. I also don't plan very far ahead when making gifts and throw in clashing pieces of fabric whenever it takes my fancy.


Inside is a secret bird surrounded by gum blossoms. I think my MIL likes birds so I always point out Australian native birds when she visits. Maybe she doesn't like birds but has come to believe I like birds. We're going to devolve into a cycle of bird-themed presents that neither recipient is very keen on.

The body lining is Sunsilky dress lining, probably from my bridesmaid dress from my sister's wedding. That makes one (linen), two (linen/cotton), three (craft cotton with interfacing), four (craft cotton without interfacing), five (polyester lining) weights of fabric in one small project. Go me! The cotton cord was white but I tea dyed it to match the linen more closely. I was hoping it would retain the smell of chai, but no luck. The cord is super duper long so my MIL can cut it down to whatever length she prefers, depending on if she ties it around her waist, wears it across her body, or puts it away in a drawer because she found herself a pouch in the intervening 14 months since she asked for this gift.

I am very proud of myself for making something I'm not getting money for.