Fabric Banner How-To

At the last show that I participated in, it became very clear to me that my booth display needs work. Aside from being cluttered with too much product, I also didn't have any signage. Since I have a show this weekend, I decided that I really needed to fix that, and make a sign. I really like the way that fabric bunting looks, but I also wanted to do this process to be as easy as possible. So, here's what I did.....

1. Gather supplies. I used burlap for the fabric, since I like the look of it, and I had a bunch of it in my fabric stash.

2. Cut the triangles, or whatever shape you want your fabric pieces to be. I found this triangle ruler at Joann Fabrics in the quilting section. It was on clearance for $3.97 and was the perfect size for my banner.
I just placed it on my fabric and cut around it with my rotary cutter. I cut one triangle for each letter in my shop name, as well as few extra pieces, just in case I messed up somewhere....

3. I used this stencil by Hillman Sign Center to pain my letters onto the fabric. I bought this stencil set at Lowes, in the mailbox section. They did have some at the local craft stores, but they were a bit more expensive. These letters are 4 inches tall.

I used a round sponge brush to blot the paint on, and I used DecoArt Dazzling Metallics Elegant Finish Paint in Rich Espresso. They didn't have fabric paint in the color that I was looking for, but this all purpose acrylic paint worked just fine. (If I planned on washing my banner, I would have gotten fabric paint, though).
4. Once everything had been painted, I let it dry for 24 hours.
5. Attach the triangles to a string of some sort. I used double fold bias tape. I simply slide my triangles in between the two pieces or bias tape and pinned them in place. I set everything up on a flat surface so that I could make sure that my placement was good and my spacing was correct before I pinned everything in place. Then, I used two rows of zigzag stitching to secure it. Since burlap tends to unravel, I thought that two rows of stitching (one at the top and one towards the bottom of the bias tape) would make everything more secure.
Here is the finished product!

About Me

-I'm kind of a wierdo.
-I was a band geek from 6th grade to 12th grade. (I played the flute).
-I am a rap superstar. (Not really, but I pretend to be).
-My husband is my best friend.
-My first job was at the local library when I was 15.
-I am terribly clumsy.
-I love shoes.
-I graduated Magna Cum Laude from Springfield College with a BS in Rehabilitation and Disability Services.
-I believe that mornings are evil.
-I used to swear that I wasn't a dog person, but now I can't imagine my life without them.
-I believe that sparkly nail polish and Bon Jovi are the cures for a bad day.
-My brother is a United States Soldier, and I am so proud of him for everything he's done.
-I get all misty eyed when I hear the National Anthem, and anytime anyone thanks the members of our military.
-I dance in my car and sing like a rockstar. (I get caught doing it by other driver's at least once a week, and it's embarrassing). I still do it though. :)
-I love Dunkin Donuts French Vanilla Coffee with extra cream and extra sugar.
-The Wizard of Oz is my favorite movie ever.
-I believe that the ability to laugh at oneself is the key to life.

SALE!

As I mentioned in my last post, I'm having a big sale in my Etsy shop for the holidays....however, the problem with the sale I'm running is that you have to either way for a revised invoice or wait for a refund. Not everyone likes that. So, I'm offering a different sale in my Artfire Store. Everything there is 15% off. Prices are already marked.

Big Sale!

So, it's Thanksgiving, and I have so, so much to be thankful for. On that list is all of you: my blog readers, and my wonderful customers. To show my appreciation, I'm having my largest sale ever in my etsy shop.

Everything, even the stuff that's already on sale, is Buy One, Get One 50% off!!! So, you could get this
and get this half off
or this
or this
or anything else in my shop!!!

*The discount will be applied to the lesser priced item.
*You can either wait for a revised invoice, or pay in full and I will issue you a refund for the discount through paypal.

New designs

So, as we approach the holiday shopping season, I am hard at work on some new things for my shop. So, I'd like to introduce you to the Pleated Hobo Purse...
Eventually I'd like to offer these in two different sizes, but so far, I just have a larger size. I am also hoping to offer bags with adjustable straps, as soon as my supply order arrives.
This size measures 14 inches wide, and 9 inches deep. The inside has a 4 inch pocket, and the bag closes with a magnetic snap. The strap measures about 24 inches long.

Bonanza!

As I mentioned in my previous post, 1000markets was bought out by Bonanza. One of the nice features is that they allow you to set up Bonanzas, or sales. So, I thought that there was no better way to test that feature out than to run a sale! So, head on over to my booth and check it out. The sale starts at noon on Saturday

Yikes! I'm a slacker!

It's been forever. I know. My husband deployed, we moved, and then to be perfectly honest with you, I've been focusing on my health, and trying to make sure that it stays on track with my husband being gone. The last time he deployed, I got sick. Very sick, and while we have a diagnosis, and I'm working with my doctors to keep things under control, the fear that things could back to being as bad as they were during his last deployment is in the back of my mind. So, while my shop is open, and I'm still promoting and making sales, I'm also taking things easier than I was before. I do have to remind myself, when I get all caught up in all of the things that I want to do and make to slow down and put my health first. This is quite a challenge to me, let me tell you....

In the meantime, there have been a few things in the works behind the scenes. First, 1000markets, which I loved, was bought out by Bonanza. I actually had no intention of opening a shop on Bonanza. Compared to 1000markets, it's ugly. It is not a strictly handmade site, and reminds me a lot of ebay. However, I have a lot of business cards that list my 1000Markets site, and if people go there, they will be automatically redirected to my Bonanza site if I open one. If I don't, they can't find me.....so I opened one, and you can find it here. I will, however, say that in the week that I've been open there, I have already made a sale. That is promising.

In addition, I wanted to check out some other online selling venues. I ended up opening shops on both artfire and zibbet. Both of these sites have monthly fees, so if the sales aren't there, I don't think that I will be there for very long. We'll see what happens through the holiday season though....

With that, I've got some sales coming up and other things in the works, so stayed tuned!

HUGE Sale!

I'm having a sale! Yippie!

From now until Friday, I'm offering $5 off any purchase over $30 (not including shipping) or $10 off any purchase over $45 (not including shipping) in my shop.

Also, all headbands are two for $10 (not including shipping.)

Just include BlogFan in the notes to seller for a refund!

Back to School on the Homefront

It's back to school time, and my wonderful team mates on the Homefront Team are having a Team Promotion. There are a wide range of sales being offered from free shipping to price reductions to BOGO. You can search "Homefrontbts" to see what's included! Be sure to read each shop's announcement to see what their special offer is. I've featured some of the items here. Just click the picture to be taken directly to the item!
Memories to You


Sygnet CreationsDivine Beautification

LilacAve1 Maddie and Me

Stuff I love: Twisted River Clay

I love pottery. I'm not sure what it is about it, but I just love it. I even took a pottery class in high school, and enjoyed making it. I'd love to be able to make more one day, but for now, I'll just stare at it and want it. :o)

My mother in law also likes pottery. So, a few years ago, for Christmas, I ordered her some handmade mugs. I searched high and low to find the perfect ones, and I found them at Twisted River Clay. Unfortunately, he had a show the day I found them, and they were sold by the time I went back to get them. I sent a convo just to see if there was any chance he had some hiding somewhere, and he didn't. He did, however, create some just for me in the colors I wanted. He was wonderful to work with, and when the mugs arrived, they were even more beautiful that I had anticipated. Here are some beautiful things from his shop that I'd love to own one day.

For the record, I love large mugs. I love big cups of coffee, big cups of tea, and, of course, big cups of hot cocoa! This 22oz mug would be perfect for any of those things!

This mug is just gorgeous! I love the colors! I love the lines in it! I just love all of it!

Here is a gorgeous set of bowls....Serious, the only thing that would make them prettier would be a scoop (or two) of ice cream in them!
I don't necessarily need serving trays, but these are just so pretty! I love the colors and the swirl design. Finally, my husband has always been generous with flowers. Even when money has been tight, he'll take the dogs for a walk and come back with a handful of flowers that he picked along the way. This vase would be a wonderful way to display those.

My first treasury east!

It's been a very long time since I've made a treasury. The other night, I decided that it was about time that I try my hand at treasury east. I've been very fortunate to be included in a lot of treasuries lately, and it was about time that I start returning some of the love. Here is what I came up with....
You can click on the picture to be taken directly to the treasury so that you can check out all the fabulous artists featured. You can also search "Homefront" "Black" and "White" to find more lovely black and white items from the amazingly talented Homefront Team.

One for the dogs....

I've been a big blog slacker as of late. Part of it is lack of good ideas to write about, and the other part is that this past week has been stressful. I'm not sure that I can think of a time that was more stressful that this past week. I won't go into the details, but things are looking up now, and I couldn't be more grateful for that.

I have found that when I am stressed though, my dogs are always there to cheer me up. I know this might sound strange if you aren't a dog person, but these two babies are little clowns. They always seem to just know when I need some cheering up, and they always manage to make me laugh.

I've introduced my babies before, but it's been awhile, so I'll introduce them again. First is Batman, our 3 year old French Bulldog. We've had him since he was a puppy, and he has moved across the country and back with us. He's my first dog, and I he has convinced me that dogs are awesome!

Then we have Daphne. She is a two year old American Staffordshire terrier that we rescued (or maybe it's the other way around?) . We got her in February from the West Los Angeles Animal Shelter. She is the happiest and most eager to please dog that I have ever met.


I must say, even when times are tough, I am a very lucky lady.

Treasuries, treasuries, treasuries

I mentioned the other day, that since I swapped out my photos for improved ones that I've found myself in quite a few treasuries. Here's a peak at a few of them. (You can click on the picture to go directly to the treasury if you'd like to comment.)
How lucky am I??

Feature: Flawed Perfection Jewelry

I met the fabulous Megan of Flawed Perfection Jewels at the Queen Bee Market back in May. With her gorgeous and unique designs, I was immediately awestruck!
Since then, I've been following her on twitter, facebook, and her blog, and have seen her shop grow and expand to include some really stunning pieces, like this bracelet:
While I love her use of color, I also love that she has a collection designed specifically for your wedding day! It would definitely add to the look, without overpowering the look. Check out this necklace from her bridal collection:
Stunning, isn't it??!!! Lucky for us, right now, Megan is celebrating the one year anniversary of her business with some fantastic giveaways!!
You can check out all of the details on her blog, and trust me, you want to check it out!!!

A picture is worth 1000 words....

My pictures always have been, and will continue to be a work in progress. I am aware of this. I can do my best to take my pictures in natural, but not direct sunlight, outside, and without a flash, but sometimes they still aren't very good. My computer has some basic photo editing stuff on it, but when I make an attempt to use it, my pictures somehow always end up too red, or too yellow, or blueish....So, last week, I set out to find a free photo editing program online. Being that I have the technical skills of a moose, I also needed something simple, so I asked my friends on twitter for some advice. After checking out a couple of their recommendations, I finally settled on Picassa. It was simple, straightforward, and after a few long days, my pictures were transformed from this
to this
From this
to this
Obviously, I still have things that I can do to improve, (not having a wrinkle in my background for example....) but it's a step in the right direction. Currently, all of my photos have been replaced, and while I haven't seen an improvement in sales yet, I've found myself in a lot more treasuries lately.....