My INsecurity Blankets

Will this sell?  Will anyone but me like this?  Did I really do a good job?  Good enough to expect someone else to pay money for?

The questions that plague my every creation.  This sewing thing started as a hobby for me.  I needed something to help the transition into the SAHM world.  See, I have worked pretty much full time since I was sixteen/seventeen and so to not work came as unnaturally to me as being a mom came naturally (not sure if translated that thought right, I think it sounded better in my 

head).  But, I am plagued by insecurity.  Don't get me wrong, I am passionate about the things I make and the Pink Minky Quilt (with the Joel Dewberry) was one of the first blankets I made and my disappointment grew with each passing month that it sat in my shop unbought, but after months of sitting it sold and I almost cried to have to pack it up and send it away.  However, I have a split personality...a Type A side and a Type B side.  It is the Type A side that fuels the insecurity.  I see things in the items I make...little things, imperfections, "character" if you will.  That 

make me question if I am truly a legitimate artist/crafter/seamstress whatever.  At times, I get a vibe from certain places that I am merely a "poser" if you will.  I have no training in my craft, I am entirely self taught (well not entirely, there was that one pattern and patchwork pillow I made umpteen years ago  in freshmen Home Ec.).  I am not a proclaimed artist.   And I battle these demons with each piece I make...especially the custom pieces, that someone chose me (picked me) to make.

I'll bid on a project and hope and hope I get it.  Then, when the

notice comes that my bid was accepted, I am ecstatic (somebody likes me, really likes me) but then the Type A side says "Wait a minute...do you really think you are skilled enough to charge this person to do something that is just a hobby?"  And then the nerves set in...will I get it done in time...will it be perfect (that elusive condition)...will the buyer be happy (never had a negative comment or unhappy customer, but...)  

But, I persist on, each creation better than the last...improving each imperfection so I don't have to fret it on the next project...at times even admiring what I have done and actually wishing I could keep it for myself (I need to sell the pieces I make in order to continue 

being able to make pieces since I have chosen not to win bread, but to

stay home and raise my children).  I take glee in the positive feedback and the votes of confidence from strangers on this vast world of bits and bytes and digital signals (because who can trust the positive feedback from friends and family who love and care about you?)

Well, that was probably waaaayyyy more information than I needed to share, but I still felt the need to share my "process" if you will.  I would love to read your comments on this...anyone else feel this way?  ...how do you cope with it? ...think I am completely over analytic to say the lease?  

Brillante Weblog

Thanks so much to Jaime from JaimeSews for nominating me for the Brillante Weblog Premio 2008 Award!  It is so nice to be recognized by a peer, especially as I am just beginning this blogging endeavor.  You can check out her blog through the link above and don't forget to check out her Etsy store.

Here are the rules for the nominees:

1. Add the logo of the award to your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded it to you.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on your blog.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

So...to live up to this honor I would like to spotlight a few new blogs I have found and enjoy and a few not so new blogs as well.

Firstly, I would like to recognize The Taffy Box.  This is a great fellow Etsian and blogger who helped me get on the right path to creating my own blog.  On her blog, you will find highlights of the beautiful things she creates.  Don't forget to visit both her Esty shops:  thetaffybox and motherspreciousgems.

Secondly, I would like to nominate J. Leigh Designz.  I know she has recently put a ton of work into creating a VERY cute blog where she highlights her great talent for paper crafts, as well as fellow artisans.  You can also check out her Etsy shop.

I believe I came across the next nominee through another blogger (but I honestly can't remember).  Our Busy Little Girls is a SUPER cute blog chronicling the projects and lives of the author and her family.

Happy At Home Handmade is the blog of another fellow EtsyMom team member.  She blogs about the things she creates, her inspiration, and her passion for what she does and her family.  Don't forget to check out her Etsy shop.

See Jane Run, Go Jane Go is the blog of a fabric fanatic!  I encountered her through an alchemy request and found her blog to fuel my fabric addiction!  

Sugar And Spice features all the wonderful baby accessories she creates.  She is new Etsy and working very hard to get it all up and running!  Check out her Etsy shop!

Lastly, but certainly not leastly,  is Rozies Cozies.  I discovered this blog in the EtsyMom forums.  This is such an inspiriational blog about family, life and spirituality.  Don't forget to visit her Etsy shop, too.

So, thanks again to Jaime Sews, and thanks to the nominees above for sharing their craft, wisdom, and lives with the rest of us.

A Very Productive Day

Today was a productive day.  I completed the accessories to the diaper bag that I finished yesterday.  Then, the fabric for the custom order blanket I am working on came early and I was able to get it washed and finished this afternoon.  So...today was a productive day!

My goal for next week, is to turn the fall Amy Butler fabric into diaper bags (I worked out the pattern today...was a productive day).  I would like to get at least one done by the weeks end, accessories included.  

I hit the fabric store today!  I intended to stop by Joann's to pick up a flannel for a custom order (I am too impatient to wait for the yard I ordered on line) and they didn't have the flannel I went in for, but they had a really cute patchwork animal flannel and then there was the really cute dinosaur cotton and then the puppies....So I am adding to the mountain of pending projects instead of actually starting them, but with kids and life you do what you have to do.  I'd rather have fabric and no time to do things, than time to do things and no fabric.  Plus, I do need to start building my inventory for the Christmas shopping season.

Black and White

I finished them!  I made a skirt for myself from a white cotton twill with a Michael Miller accent band and a coordinating dress from my daughter from black with the Michael Miller accents.  I have no background in garment construciton, so I used McCall's patterns for both pieces, altering as needed to get the right feel with the accents. 

Wrong time of day inside for pictures, however, I think you get the idea....

I will be pairing the skirt with a black shirt with the same neckline in my daughter's dress and the same cap sleeves.  We are having pictures of our family, extended family, done next week as a birthday gift for my grandma.  My hubby and son will be wearing white shirts with black pants.  (I thought about making them ties from the MM fabric, but I needed to have thought of that earlier, because I don't have the time to do that).

So...this coming week, my goal is to make a messenger style diaper bag with matching accessories from the same Michael  Miller fabric family that I used in the dress.  And, I have enough scraps that I am going to try my hand at a quilt (or maybe just a patchwork minky).

Enjoy this beautiful day!

It's My Party!

I promise I will eventually blog about sewing...that is what I intended this to be.  But, today was my birthday and it was such a nice day I had to share.  My best friend drove to town with her brand new baby girl and we went to lunch (she gave me Gingher dressmaker's shears engraved with my name...how sweet!).  Then my hubby came home from work and he took our 4 year old daughter to the store (always the last minute shopper) to get what I assumed would be my birthday card.  With the baby napping and them out of the house, I actually got down to the basement to sew.  They were gone a really long time and when they came home I was instructed to stay in the basement (a present in itself).  When I came up, they had a cake with candles, party hats (Dora the Explorer), cards and presents (one of which was a "Monkey Sock" that I "could share with" my daughter since I'm "not a kid").  It was a lovely evening and next week as part of my birthday, we are sending the baby to grandma's and taking my daughter to see the Backyardigan's live!  

On a sewing note, I did get my skirt done (not my best work because I'm tired and I really "needed" to finish something, so corner's were cut, etc, etc)  I will post pictures when I finish the dress for my daughter that will coordinate with it.  

Nothing New...

Upon returning home from a short weekender on Monday, my baby spiked a fever and after 24 hours of that, I have nothing new to report.  The fever's gone, but the teeth are still trying to rip through those tender little gums, causing much pain and discomfort, requiring much comforting from mom.  Therefore, the mountain of projects awaiting me in the basement will have to continue to do so (baby has not been sleeping therefore neither have I, therefore, nap time will be for all of us).  Hopefully, all will be back to "normal" tomorrow and I can get started;  I think I'm having withdrawls.  (More likely, the type A side of me is just climbing the walls knowing something is left incomplete).

Yeah! I figured it out!

So, after much research and much trial and error I figured out the link button thing and have posted link buttons for a blog and an Etsy shop.  And....I love the background and am pretty OK with the layout (it'll do for now, I'm board with messing with it).  Back to the good stuff.  Vacation this weekend and when we return I have a host of projects waiting for me.  I am making a skirt that for myself, a dress for my daughter, and possibly  matching ties for my husband and son for family pictures at the end of the month.  I also just got in some of Amy Butler's new fall fabrics for making diaper tote bags (and a small messenger if I have enough left).  I have some Michael Miller waiting to become a messenger-style diaper bag.  And, my sister needs me to make a gift basket of goodies for her friend's baby shower!  Whew!  I'll post pictures of everything as I get it done.  Can't wait to get started (it's been about a week since I made it down to the basement to sew).

Day Two :-|

OK, So with a little help from Taffy Box, I found a website with some backgrounds (I will probably change this one;  I had a really hard time trying to decide between several).  So this afternoon, I am trying to customize a little more and arrange things more to my taste and I am having loads of errors.  I tried moving my blog list and am now unable to add the blogs I had (sorry, I will get those back up ASAP).  Again, bear with me as I figure all of this out.  Soon this will look exactly as I like and hopefully be much more user friendly and I can start writing about some of the new projects I will be working on.

First Day!!!

So this is my very first blog!  This will definitely be a work in progress.  I need to figure out how to make my own blog template so it looks a little more me and little less template.

I am beginning this blog so that I can chronicle my sewing escapades and connect with the outside world.  Since joining Etsy, I have connected with many fellow Etsians and it seems blogging is the thing to do...so when in Rome....Also, hopefully this can be an outlet for all the things running through my mind throughout the day.  Some days it seems I have a million and one ideas and my children don't quite comprehend all them.  So check back and bear with me as I get my blog legs (poor analogy but let me find a groove).