Fun Colors

Hi everyone.

I’m happy to back here in this space and am getting very excited for this years, my very last, birthday give away.

Today I headed out to Gautier, MS to visit a new to me quilt shop, Block Therapy. After walking around a  few minutes I came across a beautiful wall of colorful solids. After inquiry, I found out that this little gem of a shop carries the entire collection of Kona solids.

All of them!

Needless to say, I was thrilled. I may or may not have hugged the shop owner.

I picked out this pretty stack to coordinate with some of the prints I’ll be using this year. Isn’t it pretty?

So, don’t go too far, April is just around the corner. I’ll have my official announcement on April 1st about how things are going to work this year.

If your new to this blog check out last years April 1st post to see what this is all about.

P.S. Everything in the Etsy Shop is half off for the month of March and all income will be used to support this years birthday give away. On April 1st the shop will closed for a while and will reopen with a new project to support. 

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Shop Update

Thank you for your warm wishes. I am getting more and more excited as the days go by. It seems that I caught a stomach bug over the holiday weekend and am not feeling so desperate today. I’m hoping that how I’m feeling today will be the norm for this early trimester. Nothing like getting sent to the ER to make you appreciate the what a normal early pregnancy feels like. I feel so much better today that I was actually motivated to get something done. (this hasn’t happened for at least a week)

A few weeks ago I participated in a craft show here on base in Mississippi and so I had quite a few leftover items to add to the shop. Today: Added (note – this also included taking all the pictures need to said Adding)

And just in time for cyber monday no less.

 

I’ve got some covered planners and a bunch of new camera straps along with a few sets of button magnets. And just so you know… All items are in my shop are 25% off thru December.

Hurray for productive days!

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Camera Straps

It was last year about this time that I started my plans for making a camera strap for my DSLR. I also started my plans of adding them to my give away in April. Black backed vinyl, nylon webbing, slides and keepers were all purchased but just sat and sat and sat. My birthday month came and went and still no straps were made. Summer came and went and still no straps.

I think I was scared. (Or maybe just lazy)

However, finally, I started making them. And making them and making them. These are very rewarding and addicting to make.

Here a few I’ve made so far.

 Need to add some cuteness to your camera? Some of these are available in my Etsy Shop.

It is so nice to have my shop up and running again. I am excited to start adding to Gift of Giving again and scheming for next years Birthday Give Away.

 

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Slowly Transitioning…

…and a finished quilt

This is our third week of school around here. I include me in that “our” as well. I am learning a ton about this new stage of life. You’d think that with the house quiet a peaceful all day long I’d have long hours to sew and sew. This is not reality, well not the reality I am choosing anyway. Instead I’m learning how to balance self and family.

“But no one is home, why do you worry about family?”

Well, I learned a while back that afternoons are the worst time of day for me. I am worn out and spent, ready for a nap and even cranky at times. (more times than I like to admit) Afternoon is also the time that all three of my kids come home.

I like to imagine happy kids skipping home ready to greet me with a smile and hugs. However, I don’t think this has happened once. Instead my kids are hot and sweaty (It’s nearly 100 deg. out of the house)  tired and ready to fight.

Add this to my tired cranky self and it can be quite a mess, I assure you.

Now try to add in making dinner, helping with homework, reviewing  notes from teachers, preparing for the evening….. The list could just go on.

So, I’ve been working on a routine that will help us ease into the evening.(one of my favorite times of day) Mostly I’m talking about cleaning, cooking, meditating, napping and finishing my duties as much as I can so that I can be rested and able to greet them, if they can not greet me, with a smile and a hug. Ready and in the right state of mind so that I can help them transition back home.

This of course has led to a change in my creating time. (or at least the creating time I thought I was going to get) Lets not even talk about blogging time. But through it all, I had some moments here and there to spend on this quilt and I’m even here talking about it.

I am loving it so very much. I did the same design as my last quilt and am thinking about putting directions together for it. Any one interested in hearing about it?

Anyway, here it is.

This one has been added to the shop.

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Purple and Gray Quilt

Gray or Grey which one refers to the color. I should look it up.

Anyway…

I am back. I guess I ended up taking a blogging vacation after all. We were out of town for five weeks on a family vacation but is that an excuse? Do I need one? Is this what I was planning on writing about? No, no and no.

So purple and gray…

In february I signed up for Pink Chalk Fabric’s Monthly Solids Club. I have loved every month so far. However, my very favorite so far was May’s Pocket Full of Posies. I had just finished my birthday give away and was reminded of the quilts I made and fell in love with the idea of making a baby quilt in this color scheme. Grays and purples.

I took my stack of fabric with me to the fabric store (hobby lobby) and found some colors to add in and then got to work.

I had both sides pieced and had started quilting before I left on vacation but just finished it up this week.

I just love it. I love love love it.

For one side I did a mini stacked coin block surrounded by a bunch of gray.

For the other side I did an all over stripy design and I just love how this side turned out.

A few more pics for good measure.

I quilted this one in an all over grid placed on the diagonal at varying intervals. I’m loving the grid on it. Not sure if I love it as much as I do having the grid horizontal/ vertical but its a pretty close race.

I’ve add it to the shop and am hoping it will find a home where someone will love it as much as I do.

 

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Filling the Shop

I’ve been busy this last month sewing some special order notebooks for a friend and some throw pillows for different friend, all of which went out the door without a single picture taken of them. Oh well. Left behind, however, were some planners for me to cover and a generous gift certificate to hobby lobby that will be used for supplies to support sewing in April.

I constructed the covers a bit different than I normally do and have found that I love this elastic closure better than the button/elastic combo. It seems more secure and is a little easier to maneuver. With some scraps I made up some note cards. I am absolutely in love with these. The ones with the stitching are adorable with such a wonderful texture, but I think I like the ones that cover the whole front of the card the best. They have such a nice heft to them and feel good in your hand with all the texture and weight the fabric gives. These are so satisfying to make.

So listed in the shop of 5 sets of notecards and 4 planners. The planners are priced at a 50% savings since we are already well into 2011.

Just a reminder that 100% of all sales from my etsy shop provide funds for my Birthday Give Away along with Gift of Giving. Thanks for your support.

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January Gift of Giving Update

I have just updated the Gift of Giving blog with some new gifts. Thanks to your support in my Etsy shop I was able to purchase some of the new Amy Butler line Soul Blossoms, I just love so many of her new prints.

I’ve added these three notebooks (two notebooks and a sketchbook) to the Gift of Giving blog. These notebooks have found homes. Thank You!

To read a little bit more about Gift of Giving go here or here.

So,

Is there someone in your life who needs a gift? Head on over to the blog and claim a gift. Rules are listed there.

Thanks for helping share the gift of handmade.

April

P.S. I’ve updated the shop with almost identical notebooks.

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Some Changes

I love the marking of a new year. For me the most significant marker is my birthday and I like to set my big goal and such at that time, but in January I like to take the time to think of adjustments I need to make in my life as well. This January I am mostly thinking about changes that can be contained within the name By Small Means: the blog, my Etsy shop, my Birthday Give Away and Gift of Giving.

The Blog –

This year I want to blog a bit more consistently. As I look back over the years of this blog there are huge gaps of time that are missing. I’m not thinking about blogging everyday or anything but I do want to have a presence here throughout each month.

I also want to be more organized behind the scenes. I use this blog as a window into my life and would like to have it organized in such a way that I can make each year into a book or some other tangible form. In order to do that I need to organize my pictures better. This requires cleaning up flickr and my wordpress gallery, uploading directly to the blog and also having a back up on flickr. It would also be nice to organize my photos on my computer as well. And maybe even have some printed off and put into photo albums or something. (I’ve given up on the idea of scrapbooking.)

Birthday Give Away –

This year and hopefully in years to come I want to include a gift to someone within my community, wherever I may happen to be. This year I’m thinking about making two quilts. One to give away to readers and one to give away to someone in need locally. I’ll discuss that more as April approaches.

Gift of Giving –

This is a relatively new aspect of By Small Means but I really want to see more of it. I have found so much happiness with it already. I’m hoping that time and means will allow an update of gifts once a month.

My Etsy Shop –

Here there will be a big change in my prices. In the past I have only been looking to move items in the shop, pricing them at or below cost. I really enjoy making the items listed but didn’t have a home or purpose for them and so the shop was a great way to find homes for them.  I never cared whether or not items sold and I often removed items to give as gifts.

I have decided to have the shop support both  the Birthday Give Away and Gift of Giving. In order for that to happen I need to price my items so I am actually able to bring in money to support these giving opportunities. I have given this some thought and here is what I have decided to do.

• Double the actual cost of making the item – This way I can replenish my supply enough to give away one items worth in the two giveaways and make another one to sell. I don’t think I am limiting myself to making and giving the same items that sell but I want to have enough money to replenish my supply to be able to replenish both the shop and support the giveaways
• Add in all PayPal and Etsy fees – I have always just eaten these myself and never considered them.
• Add in the price to ship the item within the United States – I will do this so that I can pay to ship a gift away. I know that if the gifts need to go outside of the United States it will cost more but this should cover most of them.

Add this all up and it equals a significant increase in prices.

Before coming to this conclusion I looked at Pink Chalk Studios post called The Business of Craft: Pricing Part 1 and realized that what I wanted to charge for my items came out to be similar to what she has broken down in the post. So, I feel ok about it. I do still worry that by increasing prices so much it might deter people from purchasing and then limiting my resources for giving but I will just have to see how it goes.

In addition to the changes with By Small Means I also want to be better at corresponding with friends and family. I am shamefully bad at putting off replying to e-mails. Sometimes I even never get around to it. This is something that needs to change. I have to opportunity to move around a lot and with each move I meet people who change my life. In order to keep that relationship I must make a bigger effort. (I know, I know, shame on me.)

I love this little area of my life and am excited about these changes. Thank you so much for your support in 2010 and years past. I’m looking forward to this new year.

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Shop Update

Hello all,

I just wanted to let you know, since I have received quite a few requests, that I have listed some new 2011 planners in the shop. This will be my last listing for the year. Thanks so much for your support. 

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