Busy Busy

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I've been busy. Full time work is exhausting, and it's even more so when you're new and don't know anything. But such is life and such is the life of pretty decent pay.

But back to crafting. I've been working with hibiscus5tiger again on some little critters.

First was a 4" duck request, and this was my first draft.


This is the first duck I came up with. It's still a draft so it's not sewn. It's a simple, goofy duck that I will finish later to post, though it can be made into anything really.

The two other critters ended up in a listing. I wish work allowed me more time for sewing. It's just exhausting.

New Purse

This took me forever to make, but I'm really happy with how it turned out. After I lost most of the pieces to my companion cube doll, I sewed it together with a t-shirt and made a purse. I left it pretty generic and customizable (pockets, etc).

I'm not sure what's on the chopping block next. Back to the drawing board :)

First Sale

I made my first sale the other day. A slight modification of the yellow penguin key chain. I would have shipped sooner but I had to remake it, so I get to be that cool person at the post office on a Saturday. My first paycheck from ManPower also came in yesterday, which is super exciting to say the least.

Besides these two pieces of exciting news, I've been pretty boring working for "the man" in good old downtown Pittsburgh. I have a Weighted Companion Cube purse on the way which is very shiny and fun. It's really hard to make time for sewing during the week I'm finding out.

What's good:
The job isn't exhausting work
I'm learning a lot about finance, business, and how banks work
Huge room for advancement
<3 my coworkers

What's not so good:
Getting up at 6:30am
The job is still Customer Service of d00m

New Job

My new job starts on Monday. 4 weeks of 8 1/2 training days in a temp-to-hire position at Citizens Bank is going to take out a huge chunk of my day, but it will be worth it. Insurance and FREE CAPPUCCINO. Really all I heard was the latter, I'm not going to lie. This weekend will probably consist of getting as many projects drafted as I can to be picked away at the rest of the week.

I'm also sitting here debating what kind of afternoon is more relaxing to get in the mood to craft. I had an afternoon of housework (after my pre-orientation) and sake. Now I have a sake buzz and don't really feel like doing anything. I had a few nice nights of cheap beer and crafting, which turned out quite nicely.

I've been thinking about regrets lately, and chances I didn't take. This happens to me a lot as I have an unbridled fear of finishing projects. I take that back. I wait until I have a bunch of projects lined up and finish in a mad dash to feel completed. It's fun really. I regret preparations I didn't take, as well as chances I thought I couldn't risk. It's all so vague, anonymous, and wonderful isn't it?

Back to crafting for a minute: I've been cutting up my Barbie curtains for another throw pillow. This thing has become more of a project than I expected. I almost don't even want to look at it anymore.

Another project on my drawing board is a zine about travel. It should be fun.

Old Clothes

So I've reached a bit of a dilemma. I finished the DiGi Charat pillow which was mainly reconstructed from t-shirts and the like which got me in the mood for more t-shirt surgery. Doing this, I found a bag I had mostly forgotten about full of ill fitted or odd clothing that was to be donated to the Salvation Army. As we speak I have a very ugly shirt in my lap I just took scissors to. So where do I drawl the line between what to donate and what to keep for crafting? I feel selfish hording random clothes I'm never going to (or can't) wear in the odd hopes I can make some profit on them. Profit or not, even transform them into something cute and usable.

At the moment I'm reconstructing things I'm not entirely proud of owning. The first was the DiGi Charat shirt, and now I'm tearing up old Barbie curtains. Ok, one Barbie curtain. That was my excuse why I couldn't sell it as is.

I think I have hoarding genes in my blood. My dad refused to throw ANYTHING away. Hell, he would even take things others had thrown away with the off chance he's use it one day. That day (proven time and time again) would never come. Everything was always being saved for something special or the right time. I admired the sense of recycling he had, but as you imagine our house is a mess. I want to take this tendency a step further and put all these things to use. Well, what's still usable at least.

Book Time

Taking a break from sewing I'm trying to finish No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency. I get to the very, very end of things and just stop. It's one tendency about me I wish I could change.

Anyway back to the book. My step-cousin let me read it after her grandmother picked it up from a book sale at a retirement home. I can imagine it sitting around on a bookshelf somewhere. The first few pages or so being read by passers by trying to kill the time, or people in the home who just never finished it. Random numbers are scribbled on the back that meant something once, but the rest of the book looks untouched. Even the spine is in perfect condition. I'm enjoying the story. It starts a bit slow, but it's a fun read.

I'm also in the middle of Choke. I was supposed to finish this book so I could see the movie with a friend, but here I am stuck in the middle. Not stuck on anything, just stuck on seeing how many pages are left.

I'll hopefully finish my DiGi charat inspired pillow tomorrow and list on Etsy. I'm hoping to put better use to the clothes in my "ridiculous" pile.

Glue Gun

My world was just opened up, for I found a glue gun.

I now have 5 items in my shop, and one more I'm working on. What worries me is the picture quality. I don't have a digital camera so I rely on my cell phone for it, and I really have to fight light, angles, and distance to get my pictures looking...well you see.

I'm considering offering free stuff to people who will take pictures for me, but my shop is still new and I don't really have customers.

My desk/work space is a mess from jumping from one project to another. Either I need some focus in my work or I need a bigger desk :)