January 22, 2010

‘scuse me while I kiss this guy

Hooray! Jimi Hendrix is going back to the West Coast. He, or should I say, “the pillow with his handsome visage” has been sold to a vinyl collector in Vancouver, along with the Vintage Vinyl pillow. Yay!

Now I have to find a time to sift through the racks at the Village of Values to find more pillow-worthy t-shirts…

January 14, 2010

How far would you go?

I few days ago, I received a message from a girl who saw me at the TAYGCS sale at the Park theatre last month. She was looking for a specific quote ("Knitting takes balls.") on a magnet for her friend. I didn't have it in stock, but I was able to quickly make one up for her. Because she's local, she was able to stop by my office yesterday afternoon to pick it up. Easy-peasy!

The thing that struck me was that she was willing to drive out of her way to come and get a $6 magnet. But, really, I guess it's no different than me driving out to the scrapbooking store down Pembina Highway for a piece of paper or to the St Norbert Farmer's Market for a couple ears of corn. Compared to other places, Winnipeg's not all that big. I wonder if the same would be true irf I lived anywhere else. Would customers drive from, say, North Vancouver to Langley to pick up a pin...or a mirror? How far would you go to support a local business?

January 12, 2010

Making a Comeback

One of my resolutions for 2010 is to tidy-up (and keep-up) my Etsy shop. Unlike a "brick & mortar" store that requires cleaning and re-merchandising to keep it fresh, an online shop stays in the same condition all the time. But, is that a good thing? Broken links, stale product listings and out-of-season offerings can be the death of an e-store. My own Etsy shop was suffering from a little neglect - we're almost two weeks into January and I was still advertising stocking-stuffers. That's about as appealing as a brown Christmas tree dropping needles on the carpet!

So, I've rolled up my sleeves and started brushing-away the virtual cobwebs. First on my list - get some new listings up! I've added 3 new upcycled t-shirt pillows:







...and 2 new altered Altoids tins:





And, yes, the stocking stuffers are gone. Go see for yourself! My Etsy shop.

January 8, 2010

Button, button...

....who's got the button? Me! In fact, I have lots of buttons. Check out this awesome cuff bracelet that my mom (aka Mumji) made for me:



Isn't it fabulous? It reminds me of something Molly Ringwald's character in Pretty In Pink would have worn...or maybe even Coco Chanel (had she been into upcycling).



It's such a simple concept, really, but the beauty is in the execution. You take a handful of buttons and sew them to a wrist-sized loop of elastic; white for light buttons, black for dark buttons. And, as tedious as sewing-on buttons is, the more you can fit on there, the better...so, suck it up and keep stitching.

This is an awesome way to use up all the odd buttons in your collection, but who are we fooling? It's an even better excuse to go digging through those button bins at the vintage shop or notions store.

Love it! And I love my Mumji for taking the time (and risking countless needle-pokes) to make it for me.

January 4, 2010

Today's Horoscope

Words to live by...and not just today.

"Sometimes creativity can be a playful interpretation of your ideas, but other times it is just plain hard work. Today you get the best of both worlds as your methodical approach to a project enables you to be inspired yet productive. Don't try to force your vision; just analyze what you know and express what you feel."

Happy New Year!