Celebrate the Boy 2013: Update #1

Posted on February 27, 2013 by oliver's fancy

In the midst of all the crazy activity going on over here getting ready to move in to my shop booth on Saturday, I decided to take a little break yesterday to do some sewing for my boys. It is Celebrate the Boy week after all, and I needed a creative break.

First off, a super quick and easy project- some fabric belts. Oliver has been given quite a few pair of pants and most of them fall right off his skinny little waist- even wearing his cloth diapers! Looks like I have a tall and skinny kid…. just like his daddy. 🙂 I have been meaning to try this pattern for a while and just never got around to it. The belt pattern is the Hold ‘Em Up Belt from Sewing for Boys. I modified it a bit to make the belts 3/4″ wide instead of 1″ since 1″ is too big for his pant loops. I used some old D-rings I had saved from some discarded purses of mine. The blue one is my favorite. I just love the pop of color it gives. Fabric is from a Pink Castle order back when she had her moving sale: (FYI if you need a good online shop, I highly recommend Pink Castle Fabrics!) Metro Circles in Turquoise and Sketch in Coffee. Don’t know why I didn’t make these sooner- they came together so quickly and work really well on his pants. I used some Craft Fuse 808 as interfacing to make them a bit stiffer and they turned out a perfect weight.

Next up, we have my first handmades for little brother- some Quick Change Trousers. Pattern is from Anna Maria Horner’s book Handmade Beginnings. I made a few of these for Oliver and really enjoyed the pattern so I decided little bro needed his own pair. Size is 0-3 months. On Oliver, these tended to run big so not sure how soon the pants will fit the little man, but I can’t wait to try them out….Oh only about 14 more weeks till we get to meet this little fella! 🙂 I love the fabrics together on these pants. I used more of my Pink Castle order- the Metro Circles in Gray and some of the Summersville Alphabetty In Seafoam print I’ve been hoarding. Kona cotton blue is the coordinating reverse fabric. I love these metro circles and wish I had bought more! That’s all my extra fun I can have for now- back to shop sewing. Hopefully the move goes well this week and I can tackle some fun boy projects next week. Glad Celebrate the Boy is 2 weeks long!

Celebrate the Boy 2013!!

Posted on February 22, 2013 by oliver's fancy

I am soooo excited that Dana and Rae are doing another celebrate the boy series this year! This is their third time doing this series, and each time it gets better and better. Having boy number 2 on the way in our household makes this extra pertinent for me. I love sewing for Oliver, but I do get discouraged looking at all the cute girl patterns and knowing I can’t use them. This series is coming at a great time for me to get motivated to make baby boy #2 some cool stuff. Check out how cool Elliot and Owen are- definitely sporting cool handmades! I get such a kick out of Elliot’s facial expressions… what a cute kid!

The series begins on Monday and will run for 2 weeks. They have a great Flickr pool going as well as an Instagram hashtag (#celebratetheBOY) for all you IG junkies (myself included in that list:) ). Next week is a busy week for me, but I’m definitely gonna squeeze in some time for boy-related sewing! Hope you will all follow along with everyone and join in the fun! Cannot wait to see what everyone comes up with!

Oliver’s Fancy…coming to a shop near you!

Posted on February 20, 2013 by oliver's fancy

I hinted last weekend on Instagram that I would be making a big announcement this week and here it goes! This may not be that big to you, but it is a big step for me. I have been given the opportunity to share a booth rental space at a shop in town! For you locals, it is the Shoppes on Trade Street in downtown Greer. This is a very exciting opportunity because the shop recently came under new management, and they are restructuring to include 14 new artisans in various fields- sewing, crafting, jewelry. They are really working to bring in a more modern vibe to the store. I will be sharing my space with Brio Trio. (Check out her super cute fox and wolf softies!) We open our booth the first weekend of March.

As you can imagine, that means I have been a busy little bee cranking out lots of new onesies and hoops for my space. It’s a lot to do in a short amount of time, but I am feeling pretty confident with what I’ve gotten done so far. I’m hoping to get finished with all the things that I have on my list so I can branch out and try some new items…we shall see how that goes. Anywho, I have committed to try this out for 3 months at least. Here’s hoping to a great, new venture! I am a bit nervous about this, because I have done some re-evaluating of my prices and such and have made the leap to adjust my items how they really should be priced. Part of me is worried that means that no one will buy anything, but one of the things I learned at the Maker’s Summit was not to undervalue myself because I am crippling my future options.

I thought I would share some pictures of some things I have been working on so far…really loving it! Spoiler alert… I am now branching out to include some girly items. I also updated the etsy shop for any of you who like what you see, but live out of town. Whew! I didn’t realize how long it had been since I did a proper update on etsy…it majorly needed it!

Another fun thing is that my logo has been completed (yay)! I am working on a new blog and etsy header, but I was able to go ahead and order my custom stamp so that I can stamp my logo on my onesies and hoops. Feels so good to be official. Now to go make some money to reimburse all my supply costs!

Current Projects

Posted on February 13, 2013 by oliver's fancy

I have been very busy doing a little of this and a little of that…not enough to share an entire post about each thing so I thought I’d give a bit of a collage of all my random projects.

First off, I have ventured into girly world with my hoops and onesies. After completing a custom Etsy order for a special little girl’s room, I used some of the scraps to make some onesies for a friend’s baby shower. I am loving this look and I think you might see some more girly stuff in my Etsy shop from here on out…not changing who I am but expanding a bit so I don’t lose out on an audience I am not currently reaching.

I also completed another figure 8 scarf as a birthday present for my aunt. I have tweaked this pattern so that it is now super easy and such a fun little present! Really must make one of these for myself soon! This one was made in a cotton/linen blend fabric and I really love the weight and feel of it.

I tried out Anna’s new pattern– the divided basket- to see if I want to sell these in the future… It ended up being the perfect container for the balls and books we purchased for a friend’s little man’s first birthday party. I need a few more practice rounds with this pattern to work out some kinks, but I’m thinking it’s a go. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

A custom quilt order has begun taking shape. The client gave me a color range of whites, dark purples, and apple greens and allowed me free range in fabric choices. I love projects like this because I don’t have to stress about what the client wants and can just have fun putting things together.

Last, but not least, I have completed the quilt back for the guestbook quilt! Woo Hoo! This is a huge weight on my mind right now and I am so happy that I have made progress on it. Next step, get some 505 spray and attempt quilting… you will definitely be updated on how that monumental step goes!

Love is in the Air

Posted on February 8, 2013 by oliver's fancy

With Valentine’s Day coming up next week, I thought I would share a few of my own decorations I have collected over the last few years. After Christmas decor comes down, I get tired of all the blah winter decorations and get the urge to put up Valentine’s stuff. I don’t go super crazy but a few touches here and there make me smile, and help pass the time between Christmas and Spring. Because you know, here in the South, I consider Spring to come after Valentine’s day and think it’s perfectly appropriate for me to begin setting out my Spring decor when I take down all the hearts. 🙂 If I’m wrong, just leave me to my happy delusion.

Several years ago I saw tutorials posted on the Idea Room for both this Valentine Heart wreath and topiary. I liked them so much that I decided to try them out for myself. The heart wreath graces in the inside of my front door. Oh that door’s not finished, you say? Just keeping it real, people! I took a bit of a different take on the topiary and instead of just having one in a vase, I made three to group together like a flower arrangement for my dining room table. I love the results, and they are all quite easy to make. The only caveat is that your hands get kind of sore after cutting out what seems like gazillions of felt circles! I would advise doing this tedious part during a movie or a craft night with friends to make it more fun.

I cannot remember where I saw this idea for the stuffed hearts, but they are a fun addition to my china cabinet this year. Also I cut out a bunch of hearts from scrapbook paper and sewed together a small garland which is hanging out in the china cabinet with the stuffed hearts. Trying to take a picture of my china cabinet was a creative exercise! Maybe if I had taken the time to clean the table off, it wouldn’t have been so difficult as the table junk kept reflecting in the cabinet doors. 🙂

I also have some old windows on the wall in my living room that I like to change up with the seasons. I put the yoyo garland up for winter and then just kept it and added a yarn-wrapped wreath and another wreath (bought at target) to make it more festive.

Makers Summit

Posted on February 4, 2013 by oliver's fancy

This weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Makers Summit. In their own words, the Makers Summit is “a one-day business conference for the art, craft, and design world” where you can “connect with fellow creatives while learning how to start or grow your creative business, hear practical advice from industry experts and participate in collective discussions.”

This conference was run by the same people who have run the Indie Craft Parade for the past 3 years. I knew that it would be a good conference but wasn’t sure that it would be worth it for me to attend. Thankfully my husband convinced me otherwise and I decided to try it out. It. Was. Amazing. The three main speakers were Stephen Fraser from Spoonflower, Kimm Alfonso from Etsy, and Grace Kang from Pink Olive. In addition, there were several discussion panels with various crafters/designers and chances for individual consultations with the speakers. I was inspired, challenged, motivated, and overall had tons of fun! How great to have the opportunity to meet and brainstorm with other indie crafters who were also seeking business direction and inspiration.

I plan on taking this week to think over the notes that I took and work on some plans for the future. Right now my brain is spinning with all the info that I absorbed and I am looking forward to mulling over it and developing some new ideas. I just happened to sit near Stephen Fraser for both lunch and dinner and really enjoyed hearing his Spoonflower story and getting to know him as a person. Everyone who came was so down to earth and willing to impart helpful tips and advice to those of us beginning our creative careers.

Kimm’s speech: I couldn’t resist snapping a pic of this Dr. Seuss quote!

Very nice lunch table decor

Amy Flurry explaining how to pitch yourself to a blogger or magazine editor during one of the discussion panels

In addition to the Makers Summit, I also attended the after party also known as The Best Craft Party Ever. It was tons of fun and Ian was able to attend this with me so we got a fun date night in on the deal. We had a great dinner, letter pressed cards, screen printed tees, and made a terrarium and beeswax candles. It was quite the full day and I am totally exhausted now but it was worth it! Events like this make me feel so blessed to live in this great town where so many fellow crafters are working to create a larger arts community! I tried to take semi-decent phone pics throughout the day so that I could give you a taste of what it was like…