I finally set up a separate blog for the Eclectic Whimsy bags. :) Now for those that check in on my blog looking for something other than a constant barrage of bags finally this blog will be able to return (for the most part) back to it’s regularly scheduled programming. :) I may still talk about sewing but at least each post won’t be filled with photos of my latest bags. Hopefully I’ll get to do some scrapping this week and maybe even post something scrap related for once. For those of you looking for a new handbag there will be a link to the right that will take you to the latest creations with an easy ‘buy it now’ button for each bag. I have to get to work and haven’t figured out yet how to add a link on the side bar where you can click on our Eclectic Whimsy logo to go straight to the site. For now you can find 2 new bags posted by clicking here. I only have one bag left of the ones that I’ve posted on the blog here. It’s the one with the green floral button. I’ll post that on the bags site later today. I also have another bag made (and 2 more cut ready to sew) that is like the Nancy bag with the blue and greens a few posts back. If anyone is still interested in that bag let me know. I know there were quite a few that commented on it so I should have 3 more, 2 the same size and one a bit larger for Angie (maybe?) since she’s looking for a bag for a trip. :)

The blog banner needs some work but I’ve gotta get into work by 11 and I get to pick up my replacement phone (finally) at the sprint store or I’ll have no cell all day. I have one of the nicest phones they sell with a PDA and all but it seems to have one problem after another lately and apparently I’m not the only one with issues because they’ve been unable to find a replacement in the whole state of Michigan. I finally convinced them just to replace it with one of their regular phones. I’m sure someone in the store is pumped because they get my fancy schmancy phone as long as they’re patient enough to wait for the replacement but I rely on that thing too much to wait a month for things like voice mail to actually work or at least let me know when I have one. So, off to the Sprint store and then to work and then Mary and I are leaving work a little early today and she’s treating me to Carabba’s (my favorite restaurant) to celebrate a great August. Yummmmm :)

And, since I can’t post without including a picture I have to post about the latest book that I can’t put down. I’ve already made an apron for my sister Tammy and the instructions in this thing are so easy to follow. It’s nothing nearly as fun as Kim’s aprons but it was fun to try something different for a break. :) If you have any interest in sewing this book is a must have!

Sorry to be so MIA on the blog here. Life has been hectic it seems and the blog for some reason gets put on the back burner. I think mostly because I feel bad posting only new purses here but that’s been what I’m most busy with lately. I do still have that other exciting news to share and it’s actually scrapping related. In fact it’s gotten even more exciting since I first mentioned it but unfortunately I have to wait a bit to announce it yet.

I actually have quite a few new bags to post but my camera broke last weekend. I can’t really even talk about it or I think I’ll start crying. Had lunch with Manda & the girls at my favorite sandwich shop Saturday – no pictures. Spent Saturday night at her house & had Andrew & Celena overnight – no pictures. First Sunday lunch at mom’s without it and missed a perfect shot of dad dancin’ with headphones on with Kylie. Just kills me. :( First estimate I got was $312 which is ridiculous because I found the Rebel XT which is the newer version (although not the newest – have you heard?!) for $369 for just the body which is all I would need. Unfortunately I haven’t sold enough handbags for $369 to seem like loose change. Kay, enough whining but I know if anyone would understand it’s anyone who may still be checking on my blog.

Kay, so while I couldn’t take any pictures (not that I don’t have a bazillion to scrap already) I’ve been sewing like crazy. I also picked up some less stinky glassy stuff for the keyrings (thanks to Jenn – I owe ya an email but I’ve been wanting to try it out first and again…hectic life).

So here’s a few that I had my brother Dino take pictures of at mom’s for me yesterday. I swear every one I make is my new favorite. Loving picking out fabric combinations and seeing them all come together. I finally made my first ruffle purses and made 2 actuallin the camo and pink combo because I know someone’s gonna snatch that up and I wanted one to carry myself. :) I’ll hopefully be making another tonight and if I can get someone to take pictures I’ll post them right away, I promise. These three are each available and I could part with each for $38. The first one is made with new Amy Butler fabrics (little pricier but LOVE ‘EM!), the second has alot of detailing with some gorgeous matching ribbon that’s sewn on securely and GREAT colors for this time of year and the third one with the ruffles is a lot more work to sew but so worth it. The strap is long enough to wear across the shoulder and it looks so cute. If I weren’t wearing something that totally clashed yesterday I would’ve gotten a picture with it over my shoulder ‘cuz it looks so much cuter that way. You’ll have to take my word for it till I can get better pics. :) I’ll be working on the site this week too. I’ve been meaning to set up ‘buy it now’ buttons through paypal and see that Kim got it figured out so I’m hoping to catch her soon & find out how ‘easy’ that is. :) If anyone is interested and has any questions about any of the bags listed you can leave a comment here or use the email link on the left.

Whimsical Fall bag – $38

Perfect Fall Drawstring – $38

Camouflage & Ruffles bag – $38

Gotta come up with better names for these. LOL Alrighty, gotta run but I promise to post more soon and actually do some scrapping tonight so I can post more than just purses. :)

*WARNING* lengthy post ahead but with pictures so then it’s okay right? :)

First of all, I decided to finish 2 purses last night but by the time I got done it was too dark to take pics so I had to do that this morning before work when the sun was shining. I think every time I finish one it’s somehow my new favorite. Not sure how that’s possible. These two are a bit of fabric GENIUS if you ask me. Both fabrics are very different but both of them somehow pull off both black AND brown with some fun colors. How great is that in a purse?! Now, I’m not one to switch purses with every outfit but, if you’re the type of person that does, these are great because they go perfectly with both black and brown. The green & blue one even has some navy in the stripe so – black, brown and navy are all covered. Seriously – fabric genius!

The green/blue floral/paisley purse is a great size for someone who likes to carry quite a bit of stuff with them or could be used as a small diaper bag. Would be great as a carry-on purse on the plane (if they’re letting you take those again yet). It’s made with the sturdiest lining I’ve used so far from my favorite interfacing source. Not my favorite to work with but well worth the extra work for those that want a larger fabric bag that still holds it shape when you set it down. Blog pricing on this one is $37. Nancy’s got first dibs since she requested something with blue and green but no idea if this is the size or style she’s looking for so if you’re interested comment here or email me. If this one is gone I’m sure I have enough of this fabric to do something similar.

This one is made from fabric I found at my favorite walk-in store called Home Fabrics. It’s a GREAT fabric for purses and the pattern is gorgeous. Great shades of red and green with brown and grey and black detailing. Personally I think it’s the perfect coloring and pattern to carry end of summer into fall (so right now!). :) I found this gorgeous flower button that matched perfectly and added that for a pretty closure. The interior is a rich red with a pocket that perfectly matches the grey on the outside. It’s so fun pulling all these colors and patterns together. :) This one is a bit smaller but because of the special (and pricey) fabric and the hand-detailing with the button closure the blog-price is the same as the larger blue/green bag at $37.

And then, just so you don’t think I’ve completely abandoned the scrapbooking thing – here’s a little project I’ve been fiddling with after seeing the coolest bottlecap keyrings at a little boutique in a really great area of the town that I work in. This boutique is selling these things for $25! I fell in love with them but immediately thought they’d be fun to make and would go perfectly with the purse selling business since 90% of the time your keys are in your purse. :) I made some personalized initial ones for Jill and I to practice and some ephemera and vintage sign ones with a little real glitter added for fun. The epoxy part to give them that glass filled look was a little challenging and quite smelly. Definitely need a better ventilated area to work in next time around but I love how they turned out. I’m pretty sure everything I used in the personalized ones is from Scrap Artist. Jill and I have 2 craft shows coming up that I’d like to have a bunch made up for. I can’t imagine anyone at a craft show will pay $25 like you would at a trendy boutique but how should I price these ya think?

Kay, started this post this morning before work & finally got a little break at work to finish it up. Better get back to work so I can get home and do some more sewing tonight. Hoping the striped fabric is in the mail so I can finish up the last of my orders (yes Marcie and Beth that’s you) and then Jill has a couple more fun combinations cut for me to work on. One in black and khaki that I’ve started this morning that would be great for those of you waiting for some fall/winter purses.

Oh, and remember this little picture that I was supposed to post on the blog each time I did pilates?! Yeah, I haven’t posted one since and I think that was a month ago. I have done pilates once or twice since but didn’t get around to posting them. Being sick for 2 weeks got me way off track but I did do them this morning and it’s my goal to do it every day this week to get back on track.

I’ve finished a few more purses and thought I’d post them here again before hasseling with the Eclectic Whimsy website. I don’t do the web posting often enough for it to come easily for me so once again, we’ll do the bargain price here in hopes that I can save some time on the web posting side. Less time posting to the web means more time sewing new bags. :)

This first one is from a sample piece of fabric that I had from when I used to sew custom curtains. I picked up a few samples for a client and before I could bring them back and place an order the store closed. I wanted to make sure the purse was ‘just right’ since I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to find this fabric back & I had just enough to do only one bag with it. I love the sequined trim on this one but it was tedious handwork so that may be a one-of-a-kind thing too. It’s a slightly larger bag than the others that I’ve done because I didn’t want to waste even an inch of this fabric. And yes that’s denim on the bottom. How fun is that?! :) The blog-bargain pricing on this one is $42 and may go as high as $54 once posted on the site. Still toying with using this as my late summer/fall bag so I don’t think I can part with it for less.

Then there’s this FUN pattern fabric that I couldn’t resist making into a handbag. It’s a black background with little colorful handbags and it’s paired with the perfect stripe fabric and fun pink fringe. Blog-bargain priced at $32.

I’ve got another bag that’s almost finished to post hopefully tonight. It’s a great fabric with blues and greens that if Fancy Nancy likes it she’s got first dibs. Have a couple purse orders that are almost done but waiting on some striped fabric that should be in by Wednesday. Also got the ruffle purse pattern printed out & will be starting on those this week. Last week was a busy work week on my regular jobs so I didn’t get to those as soon as I’d hoped. I’ll keep ya posted with pics as soon as I get one completed.

Of the two exciting news bits that I mentioned in the last post I think I can share one. The other is going to have me busy scrapping late nights this week (in case anyone is wondering if I’ve converted completely to sewing – definitely not). My sister Tammy & BIL Brian are expecting again. They told us at dinner a few weeks ago and it was so exciting to actually be there when Paige and Corbin found out for the first time as well. So Nina is scheduled for September 8th for a c-section and I’ll get to meet my new niece Isa (pronounced Ee-sa – short for Isabelle) and then Tammy & Brian are due in March. I’m not sure I even remember a time when at least one of my sisters wasn’t expecting. In fact for the past few years it’s quite often been 2 and sometimes 3 of them pregnant at the same time. So, more adorable neats on the way. That’s the big news. :)

I’ve really gotta figure out a better way to keep up on this blog. I LOVE that I have it. Love that I can look back and see what was going on months ago and hopefully someday ‘years ago’. I love that by posting here & checking in on my favorite blogs I can keep up with friends even when things are too busy to chat online. I just need to learn to post shorter posts sometimes. It just seems like I always have this list of things that I want to post about and I try to wait till I have time to do it all. SO, I have more things that I want to blog about but it’s 1:00 in the morning & I should really be in bed.

I have TWO exciting things that I’d love to post about but I’m not sure I’m supposed to be sharing the news yet so those will have to wait for a future post.

I would love to post about a few scrapbooking magazines and books that I’ve picked up the past couple weeks with my 40% off Michael’s coupons. (Gotta love that the LSS lets us use ‘em there) 2 current favorites are Elsie’s 52 challenges book and Ali’s new Designer’s Eye for pattern paper book. LOVE them both.

Finished off a LO last night that I haven’t had a chance to post to the gallery yet. The pictures are from my dad’s birthday party and were taken by Leeandra with her fabulous camera. I didn’t even have to touch the coloring on them. No cropping either. These are straight out of her camera with just a touch of sharpening. I thought Ainsley’s shirt went perfect with a kit from Gina’s Virtual Ink CD so most everything I used came from that. Ainsley seemed to have just woken up before coming to the party so the journaling is just about that. She’s such a little sweetheart.

I haven’t had time to update the Eclectic Whimsy bags site and I’ve got a few purses done that are available for sale so I thought I’d start posting them here when time is tight. This one is made with the prettiest floral fabric. It’s a fun design. FUN color combination (would make for GREAT digi-scrapping paper – hint hint designers). It’s got a divided pocket, key fob on fun polka dot yellow ribbon that would make me smile every time I reach for my keys and a snap closure. I can get exact measurements if anyone is interested but it’s an average purse size handbag. Would make a great diaper bag if you’re the type that just wants something smaller that will fit a few diapers, wipes & a bottle or two. I believe the strap is 21" which is perfect for over the shoulder but not too long to carry it as a handbag. There’s a beautiful ribbon slide with bling on a velvet ribbon (actually purchased at the scrapbook store). So fun finding scrapping elements to use in purses. :) If I end up posting it on the Eclectic Whimsy site it’ll probably sell there for $35 to $40 but if someone snatches it up here on the blog I’d sell it for $30. :)

Still waiting on my new favorite interfacing. Was hoping to have it by the weekend but I finally got a confirmation that it shipped Monday so for sure by tomorrow I’ll be stocked up and can finish the bags I have that are just waiting for that perfect lining. Also ready to start cutting the ruffle-y bags so by the weekend I should have a couple of those done and ready to post. Haven’t forgotten ya Michelle. You’ll have first dibs. :)

Kay, Carson Daly is on and he drives me crazy so that’s my cue to wrap this post up for now & get to bed. I’ll post another purse tomorrow and hopefully some pics from Corbin’s 4th birthday pirate style party tonight. He made the cutest pirate but I’m too tired to download the pics anymore tonight.

It’s been a LONG time since my last post. That cold I was coming down with hit me like a brick within a day or two of that post and I’m just now finally getting over it. Still having coughing fits occasionally but for the most part I feel like I’m getting back to normal. For about a week and a half I was up coughing through the night every night leaving me feeling completely wiped out. Thanks to mom I found that Advil Cold and Sinus seemed to take care of at least most of the symptoms and got me sleeping at least for 4 hour stretches at a time. I took a break from the sewing so I wouldn’t be giving an added bonus virus with each bag but I did use the time to get some new ideas together for upcoming designs. Had lunch with Laurieg this week and she helped me figure out how to use photoshop to alter the pattern Kim had sent to make that super cute ruffle purse without a serger. Hoping to sew a couple of those this weekend. And I found interfacing that I love so I’m waiting on a new order of that to finish up a few purses that are on order and a couple to add to the site that are almot done.’

I also scrapped a new page while I was sick last week. I think it might be one of my favorites yet. Everything is by Gina at Digital Design Essentials but you can see a full list of credits here.

I had a request for the alpha I’d given away as a freebie quite some time back so I uploaded it again and thought I’d post it here for anyone who may have missed it.

 

Download here (available for 7 days only)

Finally updated the blog-pod with a new playlist:

History by Matthew West – If I listen to the radio at all it’s almost always one of 2 Christian radio stations in our area. This is a song they’ve recently started playing and it’s message is one that I need to really remember at times. Love this guys voice too.

Still Here Waiting by Todd Agnew – Another Christian artist (quite possibly my favorite voice of Christian music). This particular song touches me every time. No matter how many times I’ve heard it, I can still be driving alone in the car and get teary eyed listening to the powerful lyrics of this song.

On a Night Like This by Dave Barnes – This song just makes me happy. Such a soothing voice, beautiful lyrics (how can you beat a song that uses imagery of a willow tree?) My only complaint about this song is that it ends too soon.

Moody’s Mood for Love by Elliott Yamin – Anyone else miss this guy?! Can’t wait to buy his first album.

Answer by Sarah McLachlan – Since she’s my all time favorite artist I figured it was about time I included one of my favorites of hers in the playlist. I’ve seen her perform live I think 5 times now and would take any chance I could get to see her again.

Hide and Seek by Imogen Heap – Imogen Heap is my ‘get creative’ artist. I love listening to her music when I’m scrapping lately. I’m totally hooked on ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ and their opening performance the other night was to this song. I’ve also heard it on a commercial for a new show coming this fall about heroes which looks really good. Thought it would be a good time to add it to the blog-pod. :)

Far Away by Nickelback – I love it when a band that can rock comes out with a great ballad. This is the latest release off Nickelback’s most recent album which I think I liked all but one or two songs from.

Put Your Records On by Corinne Bailey Rae – New artist, laid back groovy happy sound. LOVE her style.

Ain’t No Other Man by Christina Aguilera – Don’t know why I love this song but I just do. I tried to fight it but it’s just too catchy.

Addict by K’s Choice – Speaking of rock, I’m totally hooked on Rock Star SuperNova too. Can’t quite pick a favorite yet but one of the contestants sang this song last week and since I happened to have the album I thought I’d add this song to the blog-pod. :)

Enjoy!