Selling your craft items ???

I think most of us think of selling what we make.  And most of the time we do sell an item/quilt here or there but what about craft fairs….

Okay, I read a lot about people who spend a lot of time preparing for a craft fair.  I also read a lot about how they were disappointed with the turnout.  Well, this is something I’ve thought about for years.  Why not a party sale?  You remember the Tupperware type parties of old??? Our friends would invite us over and most the time we’d buy at least something and hope our friend would get enough sales to get what she wanted.  Maybe she was having the party to help her friend get started….   So this is what I’ve thought and I’m sure you could come up with your very own variations…

If you have a certain craft you do that you really enjoy doing and don’t mind making many over and over again, make up several samples.  Ask a friend to throw you a party (maybe even make it a themed party – the Holidays are coming).  Have some samples of what you’d be willing to make multiples of and be reasonable in your time frame to have them done and delivered as promised.  You could take orders and request a certain amount for a deposit.  Or you could take items and just sell them at the party.

Do you like to make placemats?  Ask your friend to have, say a soup tasting, and you bring different placemats and a couple different home made soups.  Everyone gets the soup recipes and the ability to order a set of placemats.

Do you like to make dolls?  How about doll clothes?  (those American Dolls are really popular!)  Do you make silk flower arrangements?  How about paper crafts?  Do you make cards?  The list is endless.  But be prepared…. one thing could lead to another to another and you have to be realistic about what you can do….

Okay, so now you’re asking if I’ve done this?? No, I haven’t and it’s because I am realistic in knowing that I would get extremely bored doing the same thing over and over again.  I don’t make the same quilt design twice even if using different fabrics… When I make dolls, I have to change them up.  When I knit, I want to use a different pattern each time…  But because this is something I have thought about, I decided I’d share my thoughts and maybe you’re the type who could be successful in something like this… And my idea is NOT copyrighted.  I don’t own it – I’ve shared it for a reason.  Enjoy it if you can!

 

Katie

Today I will….

Start with a picture:

I love sunrises and sunsets.  This is the sun coming up over the mountains and the view from my back porch.  When I look at the colors of nature I often wonder how they’d look in a quilt and figure probably ‘awesome’!

So.. what have I been up to lately?  Well, not as much as I’d like.  I just don’t seem to want to sew or quilt and I really have to talk myself into it.  I took a few days and headed up to Flagstaff in northern AZ to visit my granddaughter, Kari.  My BFF, Vicki, went with me and it was so very nice to have her along.  It’s been years since we did a ‘road trip’ together.  It was so nice to see Kari.  She’s only been back at school for 2 months but I really miss her when she’s gone.  I probably won’t get to see her now until Christmas and while she’s home I know we’ll get to spend some time before she has to head back to school…

I have quilted a couple of the Sew Fest quilts, but put that aside to get started on the John  Deere quilt.  I’m doing the Disappearing 4-patch with a Twist block pattern

and I really like the way it’s turning out. (Note: This picture is of the blocks I made up using scrap fabrics…)  I did mess up a bit but in the end it works.  I did the first 15 blocks and then when I did the second 15 blocks I switched the two colors and so ended up with 2 different blocks.  Now with the next 30 blocks I need to make, I will have to be sure to do 2 different blocks to keep the momentum of the pattern.

I’ve also been doing some knitting and crocheting.  A friend had sent me a link to a slipper boot pattern that has a Crocodile stitch pattern on the cuff and asked me if I could do it.  So… I downloaded the pattern and have been trying to get these slippers done and I will give them to her for her B-day in December.  I didn’t really like the way the pattern was written and have had to ‘ad lib’ to make it work out the way I think it should.  I guess I should add here that the slippers are crochet.  I’ve been knitting some fingerless mitts and then some cotton dish cloths.  At first, I couldn’t see the sense in a ‘fingerless’ mitt, but once I made the first pair for myself, I got it.  My hands do get cold and I can wear the fingerless mitts and still get things done and they do help with keeping my hands warm.  The dish cloths are a favorite of the ladies in my family.  Since I started making these, I could never go back to a flimsy store bought dish cloth.  And my girls let me know when they need more…..

Baby sat the two youngest grandsons a few mornings this week.  They were on Fall break (yes their school does fall and spring break) and with mom in school and dad working…. Anyway, it reminds me I’m not as young as I used to be!!! 

And to end this post…. Christmas is coming!  Yes it is, whether I’m ready or not and I always say I’m not yet somehow manage to pull it off.  I keep thinking of what I’d like to do and get overwhelmed.  Tiffani still doesn’t have all those Barbie princess dresses she wanted so guess those will be Christmas presents.   I really don’t like to give gift cards or money as gifts but I’m finding that the boys’ interests are things I just don’t understand (video games, Transformers, etc….)  So if you have any ideas you’d like to share, please let me know!

Have a wonderful day,

Katie

Around the World Blog Hop

 Deb nominated me to participate in this Blog Hop.  So here I go and yet now sure if I’ll be doing it right….

1.  What am I working on?

     Right now – nothing!  Actually, having just got back from a week at Quilters for Comfort Sew Fest, I had some general house work that needed to be caught up.  Hubby does okay with maintaining but……

I will be receiving a box with quilt tops from Sew Fest that will need quilting and they will be forwarded to one of three different VA facilities that will be recipients of this year’s Sew Fest quilts.  I also have a wedding coming up in November and the bride loves anything John Deere so yep, doing a John Deere quilt for her and the groom.  My dearest friend has also asked me for a quilt to cover her queen size bed.  I have these:

and they will be going into her quilt.  I let her choose the fabric she wanted for sashing and borders.

2.  How does my work differ from others in its genre?

   I don’t think my work really differs that much.  I rarely follow a pattern from a magazine or book.  I prefer instead to try and design something in Electric Quilt.  Of course, I think all quilts are made from certain ‘units’ and it’s how those units are combined that create the final project.  As for the actual quilting – I don’t use pantographs or stencils.  I had my hubby cut some circles and squares from plexiglass that I use to help steady my hand.  I have some other shapes that I’d like for him to cut. 

3.  Why do I write/create what I do?

  I pretty well write the same way I talk.  I try to add a bit of humor as that’s the type of person I am.  I try not to take life too seriously – I simply don’t have time for the stress or the ‘games’…  Creating – it’s just part of me.  I enjoy knitting, a bit of crocheting but my passion is creating with the use of a sewing machine.  I rarely do hand work.  I do an okay job of it but my patience level is not where it needs to be to do the hand work…. That said – before my neighbor passed away she gave me a quilting frame for hand quilting.  I really want to make a small (note the word SMALL) quilt using my grandmother’s treadle machine and use the frame and hand quilt it.  Please do not hold your breath waiting!!!!

4.  How does my writing/creating process work?

When I get ready to write in my blog, I really want to write something that I think will interest someone else.  I know people want to see pictures and that’s something I’m not good at doing.  Unless I’m writing a tutorial, I don’t take pictures of a work in progress.  When I get ready to create something, I design/ alter / (or whatever) a pattern, choose the fabric and fly by the seat of my pants.  Sometimes it actually turns out the way I thought it would.  Sometimes it’s a complete surprise what I end up with.

Now here’s some pictures of some of the quilts from Sew Fest:

		Sew Fest 2014 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I believe when all was counted, we ended up with 56 completed tops.  Some materials were taken home from a few of the ladies to create a few more quilts.  All in all, another successful Sew Fest.

Katie

No pictures, just stuff…..

yep, if you want to see pictures, might as well not look any further.  I simply don’t have any to post.  It’s not that I haven’t done anything – I just don’t have the pictures downloaded in my computer…..

My friend loved his Native American quilt but it did cause a ruckus.  Now everyone in his family wants a quilt!  His granddaughter is getting married in November, so looks like she will be the first.  I asked my friend (his wife) what I should make and she told me “John Deere” green.  Tori loves everything “John Deere”.  Guess this will be an easy one!  Now to find some of that “John Deere” fabric…

Colonoscopy – don’t think I mentioned I was going in for my 10 year follow up.  I have to say, they aren’t pleasant but neither is a mammogram or pap smear.  Granted they take more time from start to finish, but it’s one of those tests/procedures that could sure save some major issues later.  Anyway, I had a “diminutive” and a 10mm polyps.  The doctor says they look “clean” but of course were sent to pathology.  I do have diverticulosis and was told I should avoid eating nuts, seeds and popcorn.  WHAT???? no popcorn.  Well, that really is not going to happen but I decided I might be able to live with a bowl in one hand and a cup in the other.  Why the cup? well to put the kernels in.  I’ll just eat the puffs

I will be heading to the Oregon Coast in 2 weeks for the Quilters for Comfort Sew Fest.  We have 16 ladies attending.  Some I see every year, some I haven’t seen a few years and some that are new this year.  I really looking forward to it.  Even if don’t sew a stitch, it would be well worth the trip just to spend time with these lovely ladies.

Knitting – that time of year again.  I don’t know why I don’t knit during the summer… I just don’t.  And, I’m a slow knitter.  I pick up a pattern and read about ladies finishing it in a couple sittings – takes me about a week.  Maybe I just don’t sit as long as they do, hmmmmm something to think about….

This is Labor Day weekend.  We will be taking the ATV’s out tomorrow to a local picnic/camping area to have a picnic with our ATV friends.  They are the same ones who spent 8 months in Seattle while he underwent a stem cell transplant for leukemia.  It’s been 16 months since his transplant and I know it’s frustrating for him as it’s a slow recovery, but he’s alive and doing well.  We don’t get out the way we used to, but each time is special.

I hope you all are enjoying this weekend and if you’re anything like me, looking forward to the autumn months.

Katie

Yes, I am still here!

I know it’s been quite a while since I posted to my blog.  So be prepared, get that beverage of choice and here I go -

If you follow me regularly, you know that I spent some time helping friends prepare a new-to-them house for moving into.  That got done and they are now busy making it their own.  Planting flowers and greenery.  As with the place they are leaving behind, this one will be warm and inviting.  We’ve been friends for well over 30 years and they’ve moved quite a few times during that time and it’s nice to have them so close again.  Now with that said, he’s having a birthday in a couple weeks and I felt it was time for him to have his own quilt from me. (she got hers years ago!)

I know it doesn’t show up well, but the light is actually a tan with burgundy speckles.  He’s very proud of his Native American heritage and I wanted this quilt to reflect that.

Here’s a close up of the block.  The designs are from Wind Bells Embroidery and I believe they’re called American Indian Feathers.  Each of the designs have feathers of some sort. 

This shows the quilting better. 

I have also worked on some stuff for Sew Fest which is just a little over a month away and I still have a bit more I’d really like to get done.

I didn’t plan very well when I did the square-in-a-square blocks.  I stitched out the jeep designs on a strip of fabric knowing I was going to cut them for the center.  Well, I had to cut smaller center squares than I had anticipated so had to make a ‘filler’ block to match.  These are small at 8” .

This is  supposed to be a Bonnie Hunter block.  It appeared in an older Quiltmaker magazine and is titled Twin Sisters.  It’s another one I messed up on and is small.  Right now I can’t even tell you what it is that’s wrong, but once I did them, they were NOT right….

I did finally manage to get something right   the star block actually turned out the right size!   I have more embroidery sets and ‘filler’ blocks to make before Sew Fest and that is what I’ll be concentrating on in the next couple of weeks.

And now a comment….. A fellow blogger sent me an email about how frustrated she was about not seeing comments when she posted and that she was thinking of shutting down her blog.  I hope she doesn’t…. I responded to her email that I do always read but I don’t always comment.  I know it’s (I hope) probably the same with my blog.  I know it’s hard to hold someone’s interest when I don’t blog regularly, but I do hope that when you stop by that you like what you see in pictures and what I write.  I rarely post personal pictures of my family and most of that is at their request because I really am quite proud of them and would love to show them off.  And sometimes, I don’t post simply because I don’t have anything really new to show.  I don’t normally take pictures of ‘quilts in progress’….  So if you do read (when I do actually post), would you make a comment on this one so I know how many true followers I actually have???  Even if you just write “comment” in the comment box….

Katie

Confession

Yep, I have a confession to make – not only have I not been writing on my blog, I also haven’t been reading blogs.  I know…. what’s up with that!?  I love to read other blogs.  I am always amazed at the creativity, not to mention the production.  Wow, some ladies are really little work horses and seem to just be able to produce quilt after quilt after quilt! 

Okay, so why haven’t I been reading (come on, let’s face it, you’re not really surprised when I go weeks without writing, are you???) ?  I have to admit, I simply have had no ambition or desire to sit and sew.  Every time I sit at my machine it’s because I’m really forcing myself to do it.  Therefore, production for me is way down.  I have managed to get this stuff done:

These are all for Sew Fest in Sept. Still have a few more embroidered sets to stitch out and more ‘filler’ quilt block sets to make up and thank goodness I have until Sept. to do it!

I have promised the little family princess, Tiffani, that I’d get her some dresses made for her Disney Princesses barbie dolls and because I will see her Wed., I’m thinking I better have at least one done!  Kari will be here tomorrow maybe while Kari works on her top, I will work on a doll dress.

Let’s see, is there anything else of interest going on?  Gosh, no, not really…  My friends are pretty well moved in up here.  They are finishing up getting their place in Tucson ready for selling.  She told me last night they hope to have it listed by this coming weekend.  It’s a really nice place and I hope it sells quickly for them.  I’ve so enjoyed having Kari close for the summer.  I really miss her when she goes away to college and that time is quickly approaching again.  She’ll head back to Northern Arizona University around Aug. 22 – just a little over a month away.  Don’t know what I’ll do once she graduates and settles into her ‘adult’ life….. I guess simply be proud of her and see her when I can

Well, that’s about it for now.  I do hope everyone has much more ambition and productivity than me.  Maybe I will get a bite and get that sewing infection again – wish me luck!

Katie

June 20

Now how’s that for a catchy blog title!?  I can hardly believe this year is almost half over.  If the second half is as busy as the first, it’ll seem like Christmas next week!

My friend’s house is move-in ready and they have actually began moving things.  Love it when a plan comes together!  I’ve actually spent some time in the sewing room this week – mostly doing some embroidery for Sew Fest:

These designs are from Ace Points and done in shades of grey.  I love eagles for the Patriotic theme quilts.  They are a symbol of our country and I think most men really like them.  I have also managed to sew together a few quilt blocks.  They are for the mystery exchange – again to be done at Sew Fest…..  For the ‘mystery’ this year, Cathy B. chose a few different block patterns from Quilter’s Cache and assigned different colors shade to the blocks.  At Sew Fest, the different blocks from all the ladies will be sorted and then there will be a random draw to see who gets what block/color way.  We will then assemble the quilts at Sew Fest.  The mystery will be not knowing in advance what color/ block pattern you’ll receive. 

So there you have it – just some random bits of nothingness   But wanted you to know I’m still around and still getting things done now and then.

Katie