further still

A couple of days ago I decided to check out the Burda Style website. I had read about it several times, and I see the magazine at the bookstore whenever I'm there feeding my addiction. For anyone who doesn't know, it's a place to get free sewing patterns you can download and tile together off your printer at home (By the way, Fitz Patterns is a good place to go too).

I spent a LOT of time browsing the patterns... there are so many good ones! Not all of them are made in different sizes because a lot of people submit them to the website, but there are all kinds of tutorials to help you along if you have questions. Normally I don't like using patterns, I find them to be a pain in the butt. But I'll take a free pattern, sure! Especially when it's for something like these:





I love them! I think they're the perfect mix of classic and modern, with great lines. The folded funnel neck on the coat looks like origami. The girl who made these has a blog as well. I can relate to her fabric obsession, only it seems that she uses more of her stash than I. Maybe I will have to download some free patterns to use up mine, wink.

snippets

If anyone ever wondered what it was like to see a model "working it" for the camera, check this video out:



Pretty goofy, eh? I almost didn't make it through the whole thing, but I liked some of the clothes. I think if I were a model, I'd get kind of bored with the shoots, and I might prefer the runway. Although, that can be quite insane backstage, from what I hear.

Today I went to pick up keys for our new apartment! We managed to find a place that was in the right price range, and it's in an awesome location, right around all kinds of good shopping and restaurants. It's not quite ready yet, so I'm antsy right now, not being able to get things going. Hopefully in a day or two!

Also, my coworker is letting me borrow her spinning wheel for an extended period of time. I just cleaned it up last night and tried it out. I am by no means a pro yet, but I'm sure with practice I could have a lot of fun making yarn with it. I was already getting all tickled by the possibilities. I have a giant bag of roving already, so I'm all set! We'll see what happens next...

I heart

fighting the elements

I just have to say, my computer and technology skills are sadly deficient. Today I tried to take new pictures of my jewelry for the shop, but it did not go well at all. The above example was the best I got. Granted, I was using natural light on a intermittently rainy day, and it is quite windy outside. But it was just not working. I thought about making a new banner instead, since the photography session was not flowing, but I'm kind of crap with Photoshop. These are the times I feel like I have five arms, and to me that's the upper body equivalent of having two left feet.

On the brighter side, I managed to have some good sewing experiences recently, and I feel like I'm back on track there. The aforementioned skirt issue was resolved, and I'm excited to start some wholly original projects soon.

Highlights of the week:

Getting these, which I used Tuesday for my FENCING CLASS. My goal is to have as many obscure and unrelated hobbies as possible.

Seeing a parade of tow trucks today picking up cars on my block for street sweeping. In my mind I imagine that the tow truck drivers look forward to it. I don't know why I get enjoyment out of this anyway, it's kind of sadistic.

Noticing that the object my dog picked up in the park Thursday was a dead mouse. I screamed in disgust loudly enough that he dropped it right away, which is better than digging through his clenched teeth to fish it out.

Getting rid of piles of stuff. The closer I get to moving, the more I want to throw everything away.

This is not an outfit

I love the weather right now. What has made it more perfect is that it rained for three or four days this past week and cleared the air. I am one of those nerds with allergies, so I was grateful for that.

I've been outside a lot.

I'm also trying to get back on the Singer. I had taken a long hiatus due to an unreasonable fear of sewing. I suddenly became self-conscious about my abilites after a few small failed projects. Today I modified a vintage skirt, and it was only a partial failure! I'll have to ease back into the whole thing. And on a more practical note, stock up on thread.

P.S. -- When I went to Manhattan at the beginning of the month, I wore the above shoes and apparently got several double takes. I was surprised -- I expected New Yorkers to be less phased by gaudy footwear. Am I crazy for thinking that?

etsy live!

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to see Rob Kalin, the founder of Etsy, speak at The Grace Street Theater here in Richmond. I heard about it on The Storque, and was very excited because it happened to fall on a day off, and right before I went to NY. I had no idea what it would be like, but let me tell you...

First of all, it was not just Rob. Matt, from marketing at Etsy, was also there, along with the head of the crafts department at VCU, the head of Quirk Gallery here in Richmond, and none other than Arthur Hash, one of my hearted Etsy sellers. It was an awesome set-up.

Rob talked at length first. He happens to be very well-spoken, and I found myself getting caught up in a major way. He is unbelievably only 28, and seems like one of those people who never gets tired, haha. The way he talked about the crafts movement was so romantic! How so much is disposable these days, and handmade gets back to the time when each object had a story and a personality behind it. He really believes that there is a limit to how far the current big box trend can take us, or even the gallery system. And when asked how he will keep Etsy from becoming just another behemoth corporation, he talked about keeping Etsy like a school of fish -- seperate individuals who come together to make a big impact, rather than the corporate standard Borg-like "We" (he had a lot of analogies, loved it).

Having the board of people was excellent because there was some really great dialogue about buying handmade online. The point was brought up that it seems strange to buy such a tactile thing as craft online, where all you can see is a picture. But Rob countered with the sentiment that I think a lot of people who shop online share -- that everything leading up to the point where you actually unwrap your package and hold what you have bought is like foreplay!

There were some neat statistics I learned too. 96% of Etsy buyers and sellers are women, which made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Rob talked about the opportunity for growing small businesses among women, which I loved. I think it's amazing how easy they make it for people to sell their stuff online, and without charging ridiculous fees. This was a point of difference with the gallery system, where there could be up to a 60% commission.

After the lecture I was floating on a cloud (bear with me all friends who have heard this ten gazillion times already). I already loved Etsy, but the experience made me love it even more. Rob was very up-front about how Etsy is always a work in progress, and there is room for improvement and growth. Matt said they are also working on developing the Shop Local feature more, which is a wonderful idea. I'm so glad I went, and I feel bad for the people who attended the Virtual Labs and couldn't hear the lecture because of technical problems. Hopefully they will be able to do another similar talk elsewhere (with better internet reception).

There is so much more I could say, and it was really hard not to describe every minute detail. And now I can't wait for Renegade! Viva la Handmade!

cleanliness is next to dogliness

My dog is into handmade too. One day I came home from work and saw this:


I have this bad habit of draping my clothes over something instead of hanging them up in the closet, so he pulled it all down and made a nest for himself. I learned my lesson, as there was alot of laundry-doing and lint-rolling that night. Obviously I thought it was funny more than anything, but I'd rather not have to worry about that again...