Whee! My Bartizan 4850 Tabletop Imprinter and 100 imprinter slips arrived today, thanks to eBay seller Mr. Imprinter.

I had a really hard time deciding which imprinter (aka knucklebuster) to buy but in the end decided to go with the low-end version since the contraption is only supposed to be a backup to the merchant account I intend to sign up for with ProPay.

All this of course is in prep for the upcoming Renegade Craft Fair SF, my first ever craft fair. FIRST EVER CRAFT FAIR! Yeeeeeaaaa baby.

My thanks go to the experienced Etsians who’ve so generously shared their knowledge about how to accept credit cards at a craft fair in the Etsy seller forums.

All told, the Bartizan 4850, 100 slips AND personalized imprinter plate - set me back $21.49 including shipping. Not bad right? Hopefully it doesn’t bust my knuckles as the nickname implies. I’ve yet to try it out. Ex-ci-ting!

image from Mr. Imprinter

Although I’m a week behind with my craft fair production schedule, I rewarded myself anyways for finishing up last week’s first batch of products - eight Big Lugs - by sewing up a bright cheery pillow cover.

Both the fabric and the pillow insert are from IKEA. I love the lantern shapes and bold reds/oranges which impart a splash of much-needed color to the dark brown decor in our living room.

The pillow was originally meant to be a simple, basic square with no borders, but the 20×20″ insert turned out to be more like 18×18″ which made the pillow look floppy and deflated. So, I stitched a square all the way around 1-inch in from the edges, creating a faux mitered border look that made it that much better! Heh heh.

The cover is also removable for washing (essential when you live with drooling nappers, you know who you are), but I skipped the zippers in favor of much easier sewn overlapping edges. One pillow down, one to go!

I was excited to have made my first raffle prize donation to a small fundraiser organized by Alameda Town Centre’s Baby Boot Camp’s Amy Haines - and one of my Etsy customers! - a couple of weeks ago. Proceeds from the fundraiser benefited Crosstown Coffeehouse and Community Center over on High Street, a place that I drive by all the time but have never managed to drop in on.

The fundraiser itself was nicely organized and was held at McGee’s Bar & Grill, yet another Alameda establishment that I’ve only driven by many times. So, all those firsts made it a no-brainer for Jimmy and I to stop by, where we bought a pair of (non-winning) raffle tickets ourselves. =P

It was fun hearing my prize announced and being there to see the winning ticketholder claim her prize. Luckily, it was a woman. Unfortunately, I suspect that the bag may not actually be her style. But, she was really gracious, assuring me that she liked it and promising to carry it. Ha ha. Well, I hope that’s true but if not, I hope she at least gives it to someone who will! I spent me a good number of hours on my special Big Lug raffle edition and matching makeup pouch, after all!

At any rate, it was a fun experience and I’m happy to have been able to support both Amy’s efforts and Crosstown Coffeehouse. Oh, and McGee’s too, since we had a handful of drinks between the two of us. =]