I so appreciate a good tool. Not only does the right tool often help achieve a better result, it can actually make the task at hand enjoyable…even if the task is snipping threads off a finished product. I never would’ve thought I’d say that.

And I probably never would, if it weren’t for my trusty little thread nipper. So I thought I’d share. I used to snip those nasty little thread tails with a pair of Fiskars Micro-Tip Scissors. Those weren’t bad, but sometimes you just can’t get close enough. Then I tried the Fiskars ShortCut Snip, which I got all excited about trying after seeing an instructor use it in a sewing class. Those were TERRIBLE. Well maybe my pair was defective or something because 3 people gave it 5 stars on joann.com, but those things were blunt and just would not cut.

And then, during my Getting to Know Your Janome class or whatever it was called at The Sewing Machine Shop in Walnut Creek where I bought my machine, the instructor (Linda) recommended the Havel’s Snip-Eze embroidery scissors. Aaaaaaah. Like a breath of fresh air. They’re light and probably easy to break, but I just stuck an adhesive hook to the side of my machine, and my trusty nippers hang in waiting for me to grab them and snip snip snip away. I like the fact that you don’t have to stick your fingers through any standard scissor holes, which makes them so easy to well, grab them and snip snip snip away. Like I said.

They were a bit pricey though I thought, ESPECIALLY after I spotted them at Jo-Ann Fabric where I could have used a 40% off coupon to buy them. Rats. But I try not to think about that and just enjoy having the perfect pair of thread cutters. Yay.

 
 

Yowza, Mother’s Day is just around the corner. I’ll be seeing the mom-in-law first, so I finished up her gift last night: a pair of square pillows with handmade covers!

Jimmy’s mom brought home a cut of beautiful batik fabric for me from Malaysia last month so I used it, along with another piece of upholstery fabric from my stash (can’t remember what it is exactly, bought it awhile ago for its cool texture) to make this set of zippered pillow covers.

Rhinos not included. They helped prop the pillows up during the ‘photo shoot’ so I thought they deserved some on-camera time.

Now, what to do for all the utha muthas…

biglug_ladybug_tophalf

Thanks to Olivia K. for ordering up this little lady, the Big Lug Ladybug Edition!

With two little doggies and one big soon-to-be-hubby to lug stuff around for, I’m hoping this giant tote will serve her well.

Here’s a terrible photo of an otherwise cute (if I do say so myself) little version of the Big Lug. I call it…Little Lug. Ah ha ha ha haaaa.

Actually Jimmy’s the one who suggested I make a smaller version of the 15″w x 18″h Big Lug, since a bag of that size pretty much covers my entire top half!

I plan to take this little guy with me to my sewing class tonight. I’m taking “Hip-to-Sew HANDBAGS Level II” with teacher Nicole Vasbinder, at Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics in Berkeley. Exciting! I figure there’s never too much you can know about sewing, whether it be bags or anything else, and we’ll be making a slouch bag, which I haven’t yet made.

I have declared today a no bag day. It’s time to face the taxes. {shudder} But I’m armed. See book in photo. Ignore purple wall. And ready. I am, after all, wasting the morning away by blagging, my newly made up word for blog blabbing. Really, I made that up myself. Pulled it right outta my…head a couple minutes ago. I’m not even gonna look it up online because inevitably there’ll be disappointment. What?! Someone else thought of it before me? Impossible! No idea is a new idea. Really? Well what about the lip balm holsters built in to most of my bags?! Huh? HUH?!? I’ve never seen THAT anywhere online noooooooooooo sirree, and boy have I looked!

By the way, check out this sweet new centerpiece I put together using a block of faux wheatgrass from the craft store + a wooden soba tray from my all-time favorite store Ichiban Kan, the 100Yen store in El Cerrito. I’m not sure what could be cooler than this. After all, look at how perfectly they fit together.

Except for this. This could be cooler than that. Inspired by Photojojo’s article Shoot to Sell: Taking Better Photos for eBay, Etsy & Instructables, I found the perfect backdrop for my lip balm wedding favors. What could be more lush than that?! I’ll need to make a whole garden of these in order to get a bag to fit. Although AstroTurf could be easier. But who knew that AstroTurf would be so expensive? I recall looking for some at Home Depot last year but thinking it was cost-prohibitive.

Wow, I put too many Folger’s crystals in my coffee this morning. Whew! This stuff is NUTS! I might need to go run around the house to blow off some steam. But I part with these fine photos of my latest treasures from Ichiban Kan, including from left to right: plastic storage bins and containers perfect for handbag parts, stacking tray atop my dining table “desk” to hold my daily breakfast, and another stacking tray for the cupboard. Talk about SPACE MAXIMIZATION!!!

  

Xine and Don got me a subscription to the Full Belly Farm CSA (Community Supported Agricultural) project, which means that we’re now supporting local Capay Valley organic farmers AND enjoying fresh new veggies once every two weeks!

I picked up my first box on Tuesday from the Farmer’s Market in Berkeley at MLK and Derby. It was cool to be there even though I was too early to see any action. I guess a 12:30pm pickup start time doesn’t necessarily mean that anything besides the veggie boxes will be out and ready by then, because I got there at 1:15pm and vendors were only just beginning to pitch their canopies and unload their trucks.

At any rate, this week’s box was quite a delight - we had chard that very night, followed by carrots and ROASTED RADISHES (I thought they were beets…oops) last night! Tonight we’ll probably do salad with the lettuce. Anyway it’s all very exciting and a great way for us to work (non-frozen) veggies into our diet. Thanks Xine & Don!

I had a very cool moment last week when I got to hand-deliver a Skip Around Town bag to a very cool customer…right here in Alameda! It turns out that she runs Baby Boot Camp classes - a very cool concept that offers post-natal fitness classes for mama and baby - just down the way from us in the Alameda Towne Centre! Definitely something for me to check out sometime in the future, if we should be so lucky. =O

Anyway, it was a fun experience for me. Not only did I get to meet my customer in person, but I also met her mom and her dog too! Just a taste of what it would be like to sell at craft fairs and get to meet potential buyers in the flesh. Very satisfying…and a little surreal!

To think of going from managing project teams in dry, corporate office environments on a daily basis to churning out handbags and handbag designs inside my little bedroom-turned-studio (not to mention getting used to the lack of recurring paychecks…ouch), it’s strange indeed to think of. Well, thanks to Amy for her business, and any Alameda moms who stumble upon this should go and check out Baby Boot Camp!