let sleeping dogs lie…

Tags

dog, dog bed, foam, handmade, piping, sewing

… although I think my dog would really like to spend all his time sleeping on my bed or sofa, I make that difficult for him with obstacles, and try and encourage him to use his own bed…

… he is a reasonably large dog, and needs a pretty big bed… and he likes to be close to his humans, so his bed always ends up being a focal point in the apartment…

… there are few shop bought beds that I really want sitting in the middle of my living room, so many have hideous cartoon characters printed all over them, or the ubiquitous paw print… no thanks! I have almost always made his beds.

… last winter I decided the bean bag filler he had been using couldn’t possibly be comfortable: the polystyrene balls shuffled out his way so he ended up lying on the floor surrounded by a ring of stuffing. I decided to change his bed filling and set out in search of some good sturdy foam. I knew exactly where I would have been able to find what I was looking for in Lisbon, but that is 2000 km away, so I asked at a few places and eventually my favourite fabric shop told me about Anno….

… I cycled 3 times round the neighbourhood before I noticed the discreet plaque by the door of a nondescript town house. I rang the doorbell, was let into a scene from the 80s, velvet carpeting, plastic potted palms and a good layer of faded dust on everything. A gentlemen appeared from a back room, took my order, informed me they only accepted cash, so off I went to find a cash machine while he cut my foam.

… back home and despite having taken measurements, the foam didn’t really fit in the old bed cover…

… in ikea looking for something else, and some stripy denim weight fabric caught my eye. I bought a couple of meters, and when I got home decided it was time to launch myself into the world of piping, so off I set to go and find something that matched one of the stripes. A big heavy duty zip – possibly bought as option B for my unfinished Minoru, and I had everything I needed to make a new bed cover…

… rather that my usual envelope approach, this time I decided to go for a box style, piping around the top and bottom…

… I finished it before we moved, but waited until after the move, and after cleaning the apartment countless times before I decided the floor was in an OK shape to get out the new bed.

… I am very happy with it, it looks good, while white hairs do show up (as they do on almost everything!), it doesn’t show the dirt, of which a forest loving dog brings home a lot and T seems to approve…

 

counting down…

Tags

christmas sale, cowl, diy, etsy, gifts, handmade, scarf, wallet

… tomorrow is the day…

… my first attempt at a craft fair, with a couple of friends, an opportunity to sell a few of the things I have made – maybe! I hope people will come, it is informal, it is a bit last minute, but I am always the optimist.

… suddenly I wonder if I have enough “stuff” to fill a stall, whether I am going to sell out in the first hours, it would be nice, it strikes me as unlikely, but just in case, I decided I should make a few more things.

… a few more scarf/necklaces as I seem to have given away almost all of the ones I have made to date, a couple more wallets that were made, but needed fasteners, maybe later, if I manage to fuse more plastic I can make some more wallets. And a couple of key rings, to use up scraps…

Finally some paper to wrap them… and I should be set!

a path traversed…

Tags

etsy, handmade, shopping, trading

… its a tangled web, etsy.

… like so many, I love making things, sometimes I get carried away, I end up with more things than I need, like the day I ended up making 10 wallets because I was on a roll, or the one I made 5 iphone cases because I was using up scraps.

… like so many I have adopted etsy as my market place. I squeeze in quietly, amidst so many talented people, people making stuff I dream of, people making things that look better than what you can find in the shops, people making such a variety of original and beautiful items. But like any market place, you need to get noticed, to draw people into your humble shack, to entice them with the things you have made, you have to be different, unique, competitive and dynamic.

… there are guidelines, recommendations, ways of getting noticed, that usually involve browsing everyone else’s shops, favouriting, creating treasuries (kind of wish lists). There are guidelines, recommendations, ways of getting your treasuries noticed, so you in turn get noticed. It takes a huge investment of time and energy.

… temptation! Such an investment wouldn’t be a problem if people weren’t listing so many gorgeous things. But a girl can only take a certain amount of monitor shopping before she cracks, slips discretely into a new found shop and makes a purchase. I have bought all kinds of things on etsy, from juggling balls to cardigans to hot water bottles and art work. It feels so good to support other artists and artisans, to help people who are launching amazing businesses, but…

… it doesn’t shift the numerous bags hanging off my radiator, the box full of wallets and pouches, the bag of scarves, the projects and creations I haven’t found a home for yet. And my idea to make a few euros to fund my crafting habits is completely lost as I spend far more than I earn!

… an etsy convo (that would be an email, a message, a conversation on any other social media!), someone launching a new initiative “do you want to trade some of your items?”. A list of people looking to raise their profile, pick up a few seasonal gifts, or treats for themselves, at the cost of an item from their own shop – seems like a win-win situation.

…a browse through a few shops that catch my eye, a scarf in Scotland, lip balm in Ireland, a bowl in Latvia, a bag in Cyprus. Messages sent, responses come in… the scarf gets exchanged for a trivet, the lip balm for a wallet… what a fabulous way to end the day!