Update

I have been so busy this week. Just as school was about to go back, the littlest one gets gastro-poor pet. He is all better today, and off to school with the others to "see his friends". Working around the kids holidays and then the illness, I have managed to finish the crochet portion of two bags (I am hoping to get the linings done today or tomorrow), and I have been working on some mobious/circular scarves (just for something a bit different).

I am also going to retake the photos of my bags, after discussing it with a friend (who has some knowledge in this area). The photos I am now using, in my Made It store, just do not do the bags justice at all, and they look so much better in real life. I can get the photos to look better, but then they don't look "true to life" (colours/tones are not accurate). I need to make sure the photos look accurate and good at the same time. I have been taking the photos as j-peg files, but this means I can only edit them with basic software (as I am an absolute dunce when it comes to photoshop!). I will retake them as RAW images, which will let me edit them with the camera's own software, which will hopefully improve the end results. If not, I will be off to visit the above mentioned friend for a crash course in Photoshop (Thanks for the advice and offer of help Sue)!

Anyway I must make a move to get these kids off to school, then it will be back for photo taking (while the sun it out). Hopefully I will be back later with some spectacular photos to show off!

Sheepish Sarah Bag is Finished!

The bag I made using the Purple Haze wool I ordered from Sheepish by Sarah is finished, and I am very happy with it (I am quite tempted to keep this one for me- I am due for a new bag!) I had a little trouble getting the colours to show up correctly in the photos. I tried photographing the bag outside, inside, flash on, flash off...to no avail. The overall colour of the bag is Purple (which makes sense seeing as the wool is called Purple Haze), but outside in the sunlight, the highlight colours show up a lot more brightly and less "blended" than they really are. I am going to include one photo of the bag I took inside the house (the 2nd photo), which is the closest I can get to what the bag looks like when it is not in the sun. In my opinion the bag looks better in person. Now what should I make next...

New Made It Store Name

As I was keen to get my Made It store up and running asap, I settled on a User/Store name, that I was not happy with: Handcrafted Gifts and Things, for lack of time and ability to think of anything better. It sounded stuffy and long winded to me, and it bothered me. I don't know if it was a bad name or not, but either way it didn't suit me.

After giving it much thought, I decided against using a name with the word "bags" in it, even though that is all I am selling right now, as I make so many other things and wanted to have a less specific name which would encompass anything I chose to make & sell in the future. I was also looking for something that was "me" without actually using my name. Finally I settled on "Haveachat Handmades"- Haveachat was the nickname my relatives had for me as a small child, due to my fondness for having a good chat with anybody and everybody. I am not sure what others will think of it, but I am happy with it and I think it suits me!

P.S. I have nearly finished the bag I am making using Sheepish By Sarah's yarn. I will have a photo of the finished product to post soon.

Sheepish by Sarah

This is some new yarn I bought last week from another Made It seller. It is called Purple Haze and is a hand dyed and spun, wool and silk blend.

The seller is lovely and her items are quality.

This is her store logo and she can be found at www.madeit.com.au/SheepishSarah

The wools colour tones and blends are even more beautiful than it appears in the photos. I have nearly finished making a shoulder bag with it and will post the photos when it is done. Thanks Sarah!

First Post

This world of blogging is fairly new to me, and but I seem to be getting the hang of it (I hope)!

I have always been quite crafty, but last year I decided to teach myself how to crochet. I bought a few crochet books, some wool and away I went. I learnt various stitches quite quickly but it took me some time to master reading and following patterns (which meant I could make scarves and baby blankets, but not much else!). With perserverance (and a lot of unravelling), I finally started getting the hang of it, and my finished items started to look like they were meant to. I began making hats, shawls, mobius scarves and fingerless gloves (or hobo gloves, as my son calls them!) for the kids, hubby and various family and friends.

I started to really enjoy crocheting, especially as I became more adept, and was always really proud of each finished item. I also received many postive comments about the items I had made, and quite a few people said I should try selling them. As my youngest child started school this year, and I was looking at returning to some part time work anyway, I thought why not see if I can find a market for the things I make- it seemed like the perfect solution as I thoroughly enjoy the whole creative process, and it would allow me a flexibility to work around my kids needs.

Making knitted or crocheted hats, scarves etc seemed very competitive to me, especially at all the different markets I went to. I have always had a penchant for unusual, funky bags, the way some women have a thing for shoes, so I decided to start sourcing unusual wool and start making unusual bags. I now have quite a collection of bags made (although I did have a hiatus from bag making to restock my family with winter woolies!), although I have given some away as gifts, and have sold a few. I am currently building up my stock levels as well as organising myself to attend various craft markets in my area. I did attend Glebe markets (Sydney) first, as it was a market I loved to bits as a teenager and young adult, but realistically it is way too far away from where I live now to attend regularly, although I did enjoy the experience of being a stall holder there. I will post regarding which markets I will be holding a stall at, when I have definite dates booked.

I have also been busy organising myself to sell online- I knew that I had to find the right site, as many of the best known ones are where people go to find a bargain. I needed to find a place where people are specifically looking for quality handmade items. I recently found the perfect site: 'Made It-the handmade market open all day everyday'. It is an Australian site, where you can offer your original designs or handmade creations for sale. I created a shop called Handcrafted Gifts and Things (the shop banner was also made by me, using a photo I took of a very unusual sunrise as seen from our backyard) and posted some of my bags for sale. I will be adding other items in the near future. Anyway I think that is way more than enough for my first ever post except that I will add a few photos of some of my current designs. If you like anything you see, please click on the link to my shop (at top of page) to see more photos, get information or check out my other items. If not, thanks for reading anyway!