Adding a little ZIP!

I've been sprucing things up a bit. Overhauling, upgrading, updating.... making LOTS of zip purses!
Lots of purse combinations and composition changes were photographed before this one won as the new cover of the Coin Purse Kit. Nice and bright - covering a few different tastes in fabric design (and strangely enough, matching half my daughter's wardrobe...!).

We get a few enquiries about WHAT'S in the kit, and what the difference is between the Coin Purse Kit and the Make-Up Purse kit (so this blog post is for posterity - it will be referred to in future with an easy link rather than a long email!).

There are four shapes and sizes of purse (12cm and 10cm boxed corner purses and 12cm and 10cm squared). The kit contains the instructions for putting a zip in a LINED purse with NEAT corners (not bunched-up-end-of-zip-in-seam corners). There are also 2 x black and 2 x white zips in each size. (If you need more zips, guess what? WE STOCK THEM!).

The Make-Up purse kit is ONE size (15cm) and comes with four 15cm metal zips (2 x black and 2 x white). We stock these zips as well. :)

Are you scared of zips? I'm surprised how many people are. So I'm going to be running a workshop at the Stitches and Craft Show to show zip-shy people that zips are (relatively) harmless haberdashery... nothing to be scared of.

I'll be teaching a super-easy way to make lined zip purses in all sorts of sizes - from coin purse to luggage pouch. See that lovley colourful pile above..? All done with this same easy method! (You may remember these xmas gifts? Same method!).

Just a visual reminder of where you can see me.... I'll be in the indie crafter section. The rest of the show will be fab too - the all new Living Creatively revamp will be worth seeing! But please come and say hello to me!

...

PS. Thanks so much to all who have sent in more donations and bags for the Rainbow Comfort Packs. To follow updates keep your eye on Handmade Help blog. I'm posting there - along with a few others - and you can keep up to date on news of what's happening on that whole front. There are lots of ways that we can help - no matter how near of far you are from Victoria. Eg. Check out Trash's raffle.... you may have a few hours to enter before she draws it.

In Good Company

Oh my goodness! The new Living Creatively mag is online now... and it's jam-packed with loads of stories about amazing creative (and very nice!) people.

There's even a wee story about me. I feel very honoured to be in such fine company.

There's a bit on the wonderful Kimono House...
The fabulous Kristen Doran...
The totally adorable Audrey and Maude...
a spot about the Sydney Stitches and Craft Show...

A bit about Angela from and Sew your Own. (Sorry - don't have a pic of Angela... but she's a lovely gal and you should read the article!).

Loads of other gorgeousness. All in all a cracking read!! Get onto it!

Oh, and I forgot to mention....

Living Creatively very nicely did a review on my Bag Ladies Brunch ages ago, and I forgot to draw everyone's attention to it. Very remiss of me not to acknowledge them, as they've been super-duper supportive and lovely. Very big thanks to Angela and her gorgeous team once again!

I'm also in the business section this month, spouting words of wisdom (?) about what I'd recommend to aspiring creatives wanting to start a crafty business. (Nothing terribly original as far as business stuff goes - just the important bits that we often don't think about when we want to make a LIVING from making fabulous things).

You can also download the tutorial for these cute little paper bag decorations here. (I reckon they'd be cute little sweetie bags at a party). There are lots of other fab tutorials as well!!

Home again, home again...

Had a fab time at Stitches and Craft in Sydney, in the wonderful Living Creatively garden...

I'm REALLY looking forward to seeing their gorgeous style overhaul the Stitches and Craft Show next year. They've just taken ownership of the show, and I think that is a FANTASTIC thing for contemporary crafters, who (until Living Creatively came along) were somewhat overlooked by Stitches and Craft in favour of traditional crafts.

This is my little "picnic table" (which was a little crowded, because I ...ummm... brought too much stuff).

It was lovely to be right near Justine with the small but mighty MixTape.

Also fab to see the adorable Audrey and Maude softies and catch up again with the adorable Cathy and Louise. I bought the patterns for Poppy and her Puppies and Robot Boy and Robot Girl to make up with my wee girl.

And Fi's table was BURSTING with gorgeous colour and loveliness. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to photograph it in it's full glory. These pics were snapped before we'd set up properly.

Great to also meet Claire and her fantastically detailed and individual softies. The colours on her table were so sweet I wanted to eat them (...had I not scoffed record-breaking amounts of chocolate over the three days I was there).

Kristen kept me alive with chocolate, good humour and the delightful cuteness of these little bunnies. I'm lovin' that birdy-twiggy print panel of hers. I meant to buy one but was distracted once people started coming in the door... must amend that oversight in the near future.
Also great to meet Belinda (somehow I didn't get a pic, but you can see her beautiful table here). I was thrilled to meet lots of loyal customers, fellow bloggers and LOADS of new people, and I talked NON-STOP!!!

The winner of the $50 voucher I had as a prize draw at the show is Margi Sisson. She tells me she "never wins anything" and had had an upsetting start to the day, so I'm glad it sparkled up the day a bit for her today. Thanks to all who participated.

I'm all talked out, utterly exhausted and surviving only on high doses of dark chocolate. I haven't managed a day off to recouperate and have yet to get around to lurking, commenting or responding on other blogs... I think I'm going to have an early one tonight and steal a few hours out of tomorrow to take the small one swimming. A bit of a slow day is in order, methinks.

..and it only took me NINE HOURS!!!

I'm packed and ready for that taxi to the airport in the morning!! I packed, re-packed, weighed and re-packed, and I now have three 20kg bags (luggage capacity for the whole family!!). That's just the patterns and sample bags. Our personal stuff will be in hand-luggage! I have NO IDEA how we're going to manage this load once we leave the airport and those handy little airport trolleys. There are only two of us who are big enough to carry more than a teddy-bear. Ho hum.... we'll work it out (she laughs nervously).

I had to do a bit of impromtu bag-making at the very last minute this afternoon. The nasty (and very cheap) big square bag I'd spent all day packing broke a strap when I tried to lift it. A piece of cotton drill, a couple of long zips, a length of webbing and a bias tape maker were quickly put to work in one of those "wrap it around and sew it" kind of bags (no measuring, no pattern.... lots of bribing my little assistant with treats if she let me finish my sewing!!!). It came together beautifully and I just popped the broken bag inside it!!!

All going well, I'll be on the third floor with Living Creatively at the Stitches and Craft Show from 1pm tomorrow, and then all day Saturday and Sunday. I'm looking forward to catching up with Cathy and Louise there tomorrow, and then Fi and Justine will be there on the weekend. Gosh, it'll feel just like home... or at least like the Melbourne S&C show in March!!!

This is..a work in progress

How to sort out my display, what patterns and products to take with me (not to mention the finer points of transporting a whole lot of gear and a toddler across Sydney)....? It's all a bit of a work in progress at the moment - I've STARTED lots of aspects of the preparation, but haven't a clear end in sight - and only 12 days to go.... YIKES!

Oh, and there's those purse kits Lara, Bianca and I have been talking about .....hmmm... I think I'd better get my skates on if I'm to take those with me.

Fi was in a bit of a sewing frenzy a few weeks ago, and I was as cool as the proverbial cucumber. Not so cool now.... How are YOU doing, Fi?

For those who missed the news, there's a bunch of us (crafty types) who will be at the Stitches and Craft Show with the wonderful Living Creatively. Living Creatively will be on the third floor -THE WHOLE THIRD FLOOR!! If the Living Creatively spaces in Melbourne and Brisbane were anything to go by, the Sydney show will be a feast for the eyes and a buzz for the creative spirit! Angela and her team have STYLE with a capital S.

I'll be there from Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon, and I'd LOVE it if you'd make yourself known to me - love to put a face to a name (I'm actually kind of freakishly good at remembering both, so don't be shy!!). I'm thrilled to hear that a few of my favourite regular customers are already planning to come along to see me.... it warms the cockles, you know?

I'd like to have at least half a clue about what to bring to the show(!!?), so Sydneysiders - YOUR FEEDBACK IS VERY WELCOME HERE!!!! We can SELL on the stands this time around, and can also have a sewing machine to demonstrate techniques, but I won't have much luggage space for lots of bag hardware, so I can't bring it all!!!

This Is is hosted by the lovely Angela. This week's theme is by Debbie. (And I'm sorry my post ended up sounding more like an advertisement... I'm a bit obsessed with this latest project. Talk about ANYTHING and I'll turn it into a Stitches and Craft conversation...!).

New Designs and a GRAND TOUR!!!... well, a trip to Sydney.

For those of you who missed it (or are in need of an update) here's the NEW design from Nicole Mallalieu Design. It's the 200mm Teardrop Purse and it's AT THE PRINTERS as we speak.... We'll be packaging kits and uploading details to the website later in the week.

It's a lovely little handbag size, with a sew-on black frame. If you want to make MORE than one, we have spare frames in both black and antique brass. We also have purse chain handles in the antique colour (on the website soon... promise!).

You can see the results of Lara's test-run with the pattern here. I think she did a great job with it (and her feedback was very positive!).

WE'RE GIVING AWAY A KIT to one lucky person.... leave a comment over here and we'll be drawing out a name on Friday 8th August.

Oh - and for anyone near Sydney around the 22nd to 24th August, YOU MUST come to see me at the Stitches and Craft Show at Rosehill Racecourse. I'll be with those lovely folks from Living Creatively. The show actually starts on the 20th, but I can't get there any earlier than Friday afternoon.

Some things take longer than they ought...

You'd think a tutorial for a little thing like this would be written up and ready in NO TIME, wouldn't you...?

Well... I've had computer dramas, camera problems, distractions and neurotic perfectionism working against me this week - and lots of teaching, which wiped out my brain-power for instructional writing after hours. (Somehow I could still read/write blogs...?).

I wasn't happy with the first two work flows and photo series I did, so re-made the purse a couple of times - tweaking and improving, photographing, Photoshopping....

Finally the files are ready to be sent off to Living Creatively.... a week later than planned. Living Creatively will no doubt do a fabulous overhaul of the layout and make it look beautiful. They make everything look beautiful!

Tomorrow my little gal and I are off to browse the Shirt and Skirt Market in Abbotsford, and will probably pop into the Collingwood Children's Farm while we're in the neighbourhood. Fingers and toes crossed, it won't rain. We could use a nice day off.

Bag Ladies who Brunch

We launched the new BEACH bag pattern on the 25th May, and had a little shindig to bring together bag-making gals from all over - to "gas bag" and network, to eat scrummy food and to catch up on all that is new at Nicole Mallalieu Design. We also took the opportunity to run an awareness and fundraising campaign for OvCa - the Australian Ovarian Cancer Network. We raised just under $200 in three hours, and I hope we raised a lot of awareness about Ovarian Cancer.

It's taken a while to blog this because I didn't have time to take photos on the day, and had to wait until I caught up with SUPER SARAH to get the images she captured.... HERE THEY ARE!

We were lucky enough to have Living Creatively there - lending their support and giving everyone fantastic goodie bags filled with Fiskars and Birch products, and we had gorgeous door prizes from Mix Tape Zine, Meet Me at Mikes, Kimono House, The Cat's Meow, Living Creatively and Spencer & Rutherford.

All in all, a good day!