meh, by the numbers.

Along with my crazy work schedule (two separate practices, sort-of adjunct faculty at one college and various temp jobs within a 20 mile radius) I've been attempting to get back a little to my arts and crafts roots. Whenever I have moments to spare, I've been making wine bags and tie purses. And kind of experimenting with headbands, but that's a whole 'nother story. In a couple of short months, I've amassed quite the collection: 62 wine bags and 7 tie purses. But while working on all these bags, I literally had no goals in mind. I was like "I'll upload them all to Etsy and see what happens!" Well....

Nothing happened. Which I was expecting... I guess. It's nice to have no expectations, and then when those non-expectations are shattered when someone buys something, you're super happy. But I guess I was expecting that too, and I was disappointed when no one purchased anything. Therefore crushing my expectations. Does that make sense?

So I started to embark on looking for craft fairs! Nothing is better than some solid one-on-one connections! The first one I participated in was more of a flea market than a craft fair. To be honest, most people were there looking for deals, not handmade items. But remarkably, I sold two wine bags! Then again, three people also asked me where the ties were that I was selling (which I don't sell individual ties). Then, on two separate occasions, people called my stuff decent.  Fucking decent. What the hell is that supposed to mean?  Here's my interpretation of decent.

I was supposed to participate in another fair today. It was cancelled because of the rain, and I can't make the rain date (poo). But, since that one was cancelled, it gave me the opportunity to sign up for the TRENTON PUNK ROCK FLEA MARKET! The spaces sold out in like, less than 10 minutes, so I'm jazzed that I am going to be participating!

I'm trying to go in with no expectations, but you can already guess that that's going to the shitter pretty fast. So during now and then, I'd love to be able to really really work on my table display. Maybe go to the Salvation Army and get an old fashioned coat rack to hang up some of my purses! You know, make that shit look professional! Cause honestly, if I don't sell much, EVERYONE IS GETTING SOMETHING MADE OF TIES FOR CHRISTMAS AGAIN.

back at it!

Ch-ch-check it out, my Etsy site is back up and running! Some life changing events have been going on, and I'm not one to complain! My work life is re-arranging, and I've been happier than ever. I'm able to focus on so many positive things in life, and I thought I'd bring back my little shop. I took pictures and uploaded new photographs today, and I have ten new wine bags in the works. Back in the day, I began cutting ties for another five new purses, so I'm hoping to get them finished, too. I'll also be adding in a section for custom orders, like tie pillows, and my necktie Christmas tree skirts. I'm hoping to post more blog updates, too... especially since I created an entire quilt top without even posting an update... I know, how dare me! Cheers to all, more posts to come!

more bags, more glory (part deux)

On Monday and Tuesday I began almost obsessively working on new wine bags to (HOPEFULLY!) sell at the Arc Mercer 2012 Walk-A-Thon taking place on Saturday May 18th at Veterans Park in Hamilton Township. NJ. While I didn't get my original goals done on Monday, I sure blew through them on Tuesday night. Here's what I have in the works:

23 NEW WINE BAGS!

46 pieces of fabric cut and pressed

736 inches (or over 61 feet!) of ties cut into 16" pieces for all 23 bags

2 tie-handles sewed onto each of the bags

excess pieces of tie from handles trimmed and saved to make the tiny tie for each bag

all 23 bags ironed and ready for the final sew

Also, I think I'm going to do special pricing from now on whenever I do a craft fair. Since Etsy charges the seller per transaction and per item post, I try to build those small costs into each bag. Since I'll be interacting with my (POTENTIAL!) customers one-on-one, I can drop the prices a little.

Anyone who grew up in the 80's and lived near New York remembers Crazy Eddie! I'm going to be the Crazy Eddie of wine bags.

midnight surprise

Last night, after a grueling workout at the YMCA and a successful outdoors Christmas decorating session, I reclined on the couch and debated my options for the evening. I could either:

1. Fall asleep on the couch while watching Monday Night Football, be super cranky when Lou wakes me up to come to bed, stumble upstairs and probably forget to brush my teeth, lay awake in said bed because of course, I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep.

2. Go upstairs, take care of business (bunny visits, personal hygiene, put laundry away, all those fun things) go to bed and read a book. Fall asleep in bed and not wake up grumpy or cranky.

I tried to be adult-ish, and I went with option number 2. But about 20 minutes after I jumped into bed, I heard my phone brrrrrrnnng-a-lllllnngggggg from downstairs. DRAT. I forgot to turn down the phone volume. Again, I considered my options:

1. Ignore that I left the phone's volume on super high. Risk being woken up at 6am from the alarm on the phone that I forget to disable all the time. Also risk being woken up from any phone notification that may go off during the night.  DING-A-LING B**** YOU GOT MAIL! WAKE UP!

2. Get up and go downstairs. Check to see that the alarm isn't set. Turn phone to silent.

Since I was technically on a roll from my previous adult-ish decision, I went with option number 2. I checked my phone and saw that I had received a Google Talk message and two emails. Lou had messaged me "dork" about an hour earlier. Thanks buddy. But the emails were to my art account. One was entitled Etsy Order Confirmation and the other was Notification of Payment Received.

I stood there, blocking the television, staring at my phone. "OH MYYYYY GOD, Lou. I sold a purse on Etsy! I have a sale!" My heart swelled. A sale! Mind you, it was midnight by this point. I went from sleepy to wide-f***ing-awake really fast. After doing a tiny dance, I ran upstairs to my office and removed the purse from my bin of finished items... and meticulously went over it, making sure that all the stitches were proper, that there were no snags, no blemishes. Then I got really nervous. What if it's not good enough? What if she doesn't like it? I hope she does. But that is for time to tell. I packaged it up nicely with tissue paper, inserted a thank you note, taped up the box and said goodbye to it.

 

So, dear purchaser, if you are out there. Thank you. Not only for your purchase, but for restoring a little bit of my confidence. Thank you so much. 

finally, some new etsy s***!

I added seven, yes SEVEN! new wine bags to Etsy today! I finished three a little earlier in the week as you may have read, but I finally was able to take pictures and post them. Somehow, I then got another rush of craft-fever, and finished sewing another four bags! I figured, HEY! Why not take a couple more pictures and post those, too?

The last four I finished were the new design I created, which is basically four ties on the outside, and a thick liner fabric for the inside. I used the zig-zag stitch to secure the four ties to one another, which adds some cool contrast to the exterior, if you don't mind me sayin'!

sew whaaaaaaaaaaaat?

I had an amazingly productive craft session last night thanks to the stimulating combination of getting my sewing machine back from the shop, sweating it out in an awesome gym session, and being scared s***less from watching The Walking Dead. Between the feelings of excitement, exhaustion and adrenaline, I was wasn't even friggin' blinking.

Yes. I do step aerobics.

No lie, I was like a kid in a candy store yesterday when I picked up my machine at Modern Vac & Sew. They literally restored my machine to factory condition. The tension is perfect, the stitches are even and quite divine.... AND! It sounds like a sewing machine again! No more k'chunk k'chunk k'chunk .... it's more like a rrRRMmmmrrRRMmmmrrRRMmmmrrRRMmmm. It's a thing of beauty. If you need repairs, go see them. <--- Look, I made a recommendation!

Word to the wise, if ever decide to take your machine to the shop, I'd recommend cleaning and wiping down your machine first, before you start sewing any important project! Oils and lubrication added to the machine during the tune-up can leak a little at first, so do a couple test runs on scrap fabric, then wipe the machine down with paper towels. You'll thank yourself for doing this. Besides, you gotta treat that s*** nice, yo.

I completed three 'original design' wine bags, complete with tiny ties and brand spankin' new fabrics! Plus, I also sewed the looped handles on seven (SEVEN!) 'new design' wine bags. I think between today and tomorrow, I'm going to write up my Etsy listing for them, and hopefully take pictures of the finished products. With any luck, they'll be online for sale by the end of the week!

And of course, I did not forget the most important part. THE STAMP. I'm thinking this should be my new slogan: "If it doesn't say Nodyl's Noodles, then that shit was ripped off."

updated!

I finally went through my Etsy shop and updated all of the shipping prices, pictures and small details of information! Plus, I didn't know that there is a new shop "about me" section. Did you? So I updated that, too! Here's what it looks like:


Click here to see it live!

 

I'm hoping that they new wine bags I'm working on will be finished, photographed and uploaded to my Etsy shop sometime before Thanksgiving. Well there, I think I just set myself a new goal!



WANT.

Photo courtesy of the amazing Allie Brosh: Hyperbole and a Half

I've been on a clean-the-house kick. What does this have to do with art, you ask? Well, damn! Hold on bro', I'll get to it... I've been washing walls, baseboards, spackling, painting, touching up shit and basically making things look and smell all kinds of fresh. I still don't know why I'm on such a kick, it probably has to do with how distracted I get. But once I fix stuff up, then I start thinking about decorating. That's like, a natural girl-thing to do right? I'm such a cliché.

So anywho, my BIG fix-up project will be our third floor. I probably won't even start it until the winter, so it makes me wonder why I'm thinking about it so much. It's an enclosed loft-ish space with a damaged ceiling, a bad paint job, and ceiling fan that looks like it might fall off at any moment. Not to mention the Moe damage. My fuzzy bunny has basically chewed his way around the room, gnawing at the baseboards and any wooden furniture standing in his adorable way. It's adorably horrible.

Now usually when I plan out these projects, I start by mapping out a course of attack: Estimating the amount of rollers I'll need, how much spackle, the paint color, blah blah. But yesterday, again for some friggin' reason unknown, I was all like "I really want to hang up a bunch of really funny or crappy cross stitches up there once I'm finished painting." And then a monster was born. And the monster was called Jill Looks On Etsy All Day For Geeky Cross Stitches.

And here is only some of what I found.
My God. The creativity is just amazeballs.

Hey Girl, by DefiantDamsel

Clerks II, by DefiantDamsel

Don't Do Coke, by knitforvictory

 

Dat Shit Cray, by LaughingStitchesByC



Moonrise Kingdom, by bobby2scoops

YOU IS FINE, by OhTriviality

Shut Up And Make Me A Sammich, by Stitcharific

NYAN CAT, by risibleitinerant

I could literally keep going all day. I think I might be getting obsessed. If you're looking to purchase me an obligatory wedding present, consider a wacky cross stitch. I'd rather have those than new dishes.  See? I told you the back story about all the cleaning shit was worth something.

damage control.

In light of my most recent blog post adventure, I decided to get smart and do a little bit of damage control. One of my goals moving forward is to not let this happen to me again. (Seriously, the anxiety is getting me all verklempt.) And one of the easiest ways to accomplish this is by making fabric labels to stitch into all of my creations. Hopefully, this will deter any buyer from saying "HEY! LOOK WHAT I MADE!"  Now they can say "HEY! LOOK WHAT THIS NODYL'S NOODLES WHATEVER PERSON MADE!"  Score one for team me.

I did a little bit of Google research into how I could accomplish this. And believe me, the results were interesting!  Did you know that you can print directly on fabric from your computer printer?  I sures' hell didn't. Craft Passion gave a wonderful and really informative tutorial on this method and many others, along with the pros and cons associated with each. As a crafter, I really appreciate all of the time and effort they put into their research! While this looked like it could have been my winning choice for my fabric labels, I decided against it for one main reason: The only printer I have access to is at work. FAIL.

I quickly ruled out using iron on transfer paper. I've used it in the past for quick n' quirky t-shirts, but the quality isn't as reliable or professional as I'd like it to be. Silk screening would be AWESOME and would be my number one choice... but I haven't done it since college. And I don't have any of the required hardware. Or ink. So... no.

My final choice? This!
That's right folks.  A good ol' custom rubber stamp with the Nodyl's Noodles logo (1x2-1/2") and a VersaCraft ink pad, especially made for fabric printing. VersaCraft can be heat-set so the stamps become permanent on the fabric used, which looks like that'll give me the reliable and professional results that I so desire! Once I get my stamp and ink in the mail, I'll practice and take pictures of the results!

YES!!!

I listed my purses on Etsy this morning!  I had the drafts all ready to go for weeks, but finally finally finished taking pictures yesterday.  Check out some of the details!  For more pictures and the complete listing, check out my Etsy site!!! 

package details.

I was so excited yesterday! You probably already saw that I had my first sale over at Etsy. HOLLA! After my euphoria settled into amazement, and the amazement settled into wonder, I began to think: How should I package my item?  It's not everyday that I send someone a package in the mail, and I don't want to just throw the bag in another bag, slap a stamp on it and ship it off. I want my recipient to feel like they're opening up a gift! I want them to feel special! So what to do?

Unfortunately, there's not much I can do with the flat rate box, but once she opens up the box she'll be greeted with this:

A colorful printed envelope, a thank you note, a receipt, a business card and colorful tissue paper round out the package. If I'm going to be serious about selling my crafts online, then I need to let the purchaser know how much I care, and how I truly appreciate their purchase. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be doing this.

celebration!

My lovely friend Kara just became my first customer on Etsy!  I'm bursting at the seams with love. She purchased one of my favorite wine bags, and I'm so glad that I can send it to her, all the way over in Germany!

bag #1 out of 10... SOLD!!

up and running!

Guess who just opened their first Etsy shop?
THIS GUY.  GIRL.  YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN.

Visit the Nodyl's Noodles Shop on Etsy!

so that's how you do it?

I think I may have finally learned how to take a picture with my digital camera.  I learned how to adjust the settings, and I started taking pictures of... well, everything. I hope they keep getting better, I'm so close to posting my bags on Etsy!

6 years.

I've been at my job for six years today. SIX. YEARS. Say whaaaaaaaaaaa...?

It's not a total shock. I think. Maybe it is. I've been expecting this day to come for awhile... but not really expecting. Confused yet? I am. To commemorate this lackluster momentous day, I posted a little blurb on FB stating: "I made it to 6 years at this same job. Exciting, yet very depressing at the same time." My cousin replied: "either way you look at it, it's an accomplishment in and of itself. now, go buy yourself a present. xo" (Believe me, I'll be buying myself a present in the form of an ice cream sandwich after the gym tonight. Again, exiting and yet very depressing.)

And a former teacher-slash-wise woman-slash-mentor of the ages said this: "Try going to the American Craft Council Show in Baltimore the end of February. Talk to some of the artists. They are making a living doing what you love. Tick tock!! Life is short. Start to show your work in a gallery. Isaac would be proud."

Touché, touché, touché. Kick in the pants received, and greatly appreciated. I immediately booked a hotel room, purchased a three day pass to the event, and requested a 1/2 day of work that Friday. I'll have my business cards by then, my Etsy site up and running, and plenty of samples to bring with me. I think it's high-time I start taking bigger risks to achieve my goals.  Let's do this.

craft night!

On Wednesday, I was lucky enough to host 3 very crafty girls for an evening filled with fun, food, wine and art.  Which are some of my most favorite things, if you don't mind me sayin'!  Some lovely items were crafted, and good times were had by all.  All in all, a very successful night!

I actually did some prep-work for our art-rendezvous on Tuesday night, since my goal was to make 10 wine bags that I could put on my Etsy site. I thought it would be so much easier to iron, cut and pin all of the bags together before our gathering, since I tend to overtake the space that I'm working in. Plus, I like to sing Erasure  whilst cutting fabric, and it's slightly less embarrassing to do that alone.  It's also slightly more embarrassing to admit that.  But I did what I set out to accomplish, and by Wednesday I was ready to assemble!

6 years of paint, plaster, latex and paper.  ...done?

detail of upper right corner

During our crafting session, I sewed and completed all 10 bags which I am thrilled about!  But, that's not all.  After drinking copious amounts of wine and stuffing myself full of tiny little hot dogs and pretzels (insert omnom here), I whipped out the ol' painting I've been casually working on for the past 6 or so years.  ... I think... I'm actually done.  For the moment, here's what it looks like. I love where this painting is at right now.  My goal is to find a place in the house where I can hang it up.  I haven't had a 'hanging-worthy' painting in quite sometime.  SCORE!

do more.

Lot's of fun things are happening, including this!
My first informational artist/biznaaaaz card!  How exciting! Look at all of the exclamation points I'm using so far!  Lou and I went on an adventure this weekend (which I'll detail in the next post...) and two women that I met admired my tie purse.  After speaking with them, both asked "Do you have a contact card?"

Ugh, my heart sank!  My reply? "Ah, no!  I've been meaning to make them for so long.  One day I'll just have to do it."

I FINALLY DID IT!  I like the quirky design. More importantly, I think it incorporates all of the important information that I'd like to share with everyone, including my blog and my new Etsy Shop, which I started setting up yesterday!  I don't have any items uploaded in the shop yet because I want to make sure I get all of my wording correct and I definitely want to take better pictures of the items.  The ones I have now are a little blurry and not-so-professional looking.

Things are moving along nicely in Nodylville if you ask me!  I'm following the quote I have on my new little necklace charm.  DO MORE.