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Sewing Machine is in the hospital…

Uncategorized February 5, 2013

Yesterday started off as a great day.  I go through periods of slight insomnia.  I sleep, I just don’t sleep well, so I was up around 4:45 with a cup of coffee, answering emails, doing some care taking around the new Etsy Team I am Co-Captaining (a Canadian treasury team), with the help of Kathleen, a very talented Canadian Artist (we both coincidentally were born on Canada Day, weird huh?).  I even found some time to wash my hair, which is now super long and a pain to wash so I always put it off!  By 6:30 I was in my new comfy swivel chair in front of my sewing machine.

I have had to retire many items from my shop due to a shortage of supplies, so I spent the weekend cutting out new samples.  On Monday morning I worked on those, as well as a rush Valentines Orders.  At 2:30 I went to sew some black elastic onto a bra when my sewing machine made this god-awful “crunch” sound. I do not use pins when I sew so I knew it was something bad.  Alas! The timing went and crushed my bobbin casing… again…

I pleaded with the repair shop to sell me a new one after-hours.  Coincidentally, I had just been in looking at sewing machines two weeks ago.  I wanted one that did straight and zig-zag stitch and could withstand 8-10 hours of sewing, 5 days a week.

The sewing machine I use regularly is actually my Mom’s.  My mom is a quilter and bought a beautiful Pfaff Expressions machine about 10 years ago which does a million and one stitches and will even cook you breakfast! It’s all digital and fancy, but has this timing issue, which has happened 3 times now over the life of the machine.  It is an issue with this particular model.  As a whole, considering how much I sew, I am very very happy with Pfaff.  My mom’s machine is now in the shop and will be returning to me once it is fixed and cleaned.

So, my sewing machine family has grown rather unexpectedly, but I desperately needed a sewing machine last night and today, and now if my mom ever wants hers I can happily return it (oh, I will still be using it, it does everything), annnnd I can keep one machine threaded in black and one in white and work double duty! Now, if only I could clone myself and sew on two machines at once!  I feel much less stressed knowing that if I were to have a machine problem, I have a back up…

I am actually pretty happy with this machine.  It is non-digital which I have to get used to again (gosh, I’ve been spoiled), and the “reverse” button is in a different place, but over all it’s great.  It feels like a tank. I’m looking forward to sewing on it today…

Ugh… so it was a stressful day.  I really didn’t want to disappoint anyone on Valentines Day!

Have You Seen It?

Uncategorized February 5, 2013
Has everyone read the first edition of Hey Doll Vintage Magazine?

I am smitten!!! I can’t believe how much work Brittany and Bunny have done on this beautiful ‘zine.  It’s full of retro recipes, fashions, some DIY.  It’s just perfect and I can’t wait for the next issue!  
I really wanted to thank them for the beautiful 4 page spread as well; it just looks amazing and is the perfect venue for Ohhh Lulu.  I hope you will all take a look if you haven’t sen it already! 

Read it HERE

A year later…!

Uncategorized January 22, 2013
Wow… can you believe it was a year ago that Anna and I were hosting our Pin-Up Sew Along? It feels like just yesterday!
Click the here for details on how to enter!

Well, Anna had the fabulous idea of hosting a little competition.  We want to see what you came up with! And, we’ll be awarding prizes!

If you didn’t sew all three pieces, don’t worry, a prize will be awarded for each category, so Bras, Corsets, and Panties will each have their own prize.

The following prizes will be offered to the projects with the most votes: 
Pin-Up Bra Corselet – $40 Gift Certificate from Mrs. Depew Vintage
Pin-Up Corset /Garter Belt – $40 Gift Certificate from Mrs. Depew Vintage
Betty High Waist Panties –  $25 Gift Certificate from Ohhh Lulu Lingerie and Apparel

Click HERE to get all of the details on how to enter!

Sugar Hearts

Uncategorized January 21, 2013
So, as usual, I’m a little late on the Valentines Day band wagon, with only 3 or 4 weeks until the big day, but I wanted to add a few ‘Valentine’ pieces to the shop anyway. Plus, I just love the colours of candy hearts…  
Valentines Three Pack

 I am adding new bikini-cut panties for spring, which are the same price as my ‘cheeky’ panties, but can be made out of any single woven fabric.  I think they are pretty and vintage-y, especially in these colours.  The rest I will be adding are in prints, so it will be nice to have these solids to mix and match with them!

Valentines Three

I, myself, have never been big into celebrating Valentines Day. This year I am so busy, I don’t think we will do much, maybe just cook dinner together, watch a movie, relax.

Sleep Masks in your choice of 4 colours!
The other thing I have added are sleep masks.  I also plan on doing a few in floral when I get some time… Ah! Time! I seriously never thought I’d be so busy, I am still working on two large orders from the end of November. Thank goodness people are patient and appreciate that I make all of these things by hand… While maybe a pair of panties doesn’t seem like a ton of work, applying the elastic, finishing the edges, measuring & measuring again, packaging things prettily… it all takes time! Lots of time! 
This week, I have decided I truly am nuts, because I have agreed to go into my old day job for a few hours to help out. I kinda wish I had thought it through more thoroughly, but I have a hard time saying no!
Valentine Red Sleep Mask

Here
Be Mine… Satin Panties & Mask

A Question I am Often Asked.

Uncategorized January 18, 2013

I get asked the question, “Where do you get your supplies” so often I thought it was about time that I wrote a blog post about it.

I am not going to tell you exactly where I buy my fabric, as I am a designer and I do have my secrets, but I do have a few resources I am happy to share with you!

Elastic & Notions Suppliers

  • Lace and Trims on Ebay and Etsy is an excellent source for Fold over Elastic (FOE), picot edge elastic, and other neat findings. 
  • Creative Effects on Ebay is a great source for sliders, rings, fastenings, underwires… 
  • Lace Heaven offers a wide variety of trims and elastics. 
  • Sew Sassy often has great deals on elastics, though I really wish they would update their website with more images!

Bra Making Supplies

  • Sew Sassy offers everything you need to make a bra!
  • Bra Makers Supply offers everything you need to make a bra in CANADA! Prices are a little higher, but if you are a Canadian, I highly recommend them as you will not get dinged with customs fees, and the shipping is lightening fast.  Plus they are super easy to deal with. I am very happy to have found them!
  • Ebay Crafts Section & Etsy Supplies Section are wonderful resources
Fabrics
  • Your local Goodwill / Salvation Army / Thrift Shop / Valuvillage.  
  • Your local fabric store.  The trick here is to go in with an open mind.  Feel the fabric, watch how it drapes, carry it around with you so you can find things that coordinate.  I used to often hear people complain about the selection at the fabric store in my town, but to me it is a treasure trove! So go in with an open mind, and try things that are a little outside your comfort zone. Don’t be affraid to use fabrics in non-traditional ways (IE Flannel Panties!)
  • Again, Etsy & Ebay
  • Fabric.com is my favourite.  However, I often order things only to find out they are out of stock, so if you like something, get it quick.  Their Clearance Section is also wonderful.
  • Spandex World is wonderful for… you guessed it! Spandex and stretch fabrics.
So, it may not be a ground breaking list, but finding supplies on the internet really is that easy.  I would not survive without Ebay and Etsy.  I’ve named a couple of suppliers, but there really are so many, and all of them are so good! In my experience, it takes experimenting with a few different suppliers and trims to see which ones you like best!

Getting Over It.

Uncategorized January 16, 2013
So, a couple years ago I had this great idea that Dan and I should watch all of the  movies that won the Oscar for Best Picture.  We love movies, we eat them up like they’re going out of style, so I though it would be a fun project..
Then we got to Rocky… and I really didn’t want to watch Rocky, so we put it to the wayside for about a year.  Well, Saturday night we got caught up and watched Rocky (I loved it!), then Annie Hall (already one of my favourites), then both promptly came down with the FLU! UGH.  You did not want to step foot in this house the last couple of days.
Anyway, I am glad to say, we have watched every Oscar’s Best Picture, save for 2 early ones we are having  hard time finding, up to 1977. It has been a really fun project, very inspiring design-wise, and it’s been a great way to see movies we wouldn’t have other wise watched… some we were surprised to have liked, like the Sound of Music (I hate musicals), and we even found some new favourites, like The Apartment.
Yesterday was a much better day.  I spent a chunk of time disinfecting anything that might potentially have a flu germ on it, washed all the sheets, every article of clothing, did all the dishes… Then got back to work!
I was super excited to see a nice review from the Lingerie Lesbian.  If you don’t follow her, you really should.  If you love lingerie, she posts some of the most wonderful things… very inspiring! 

I am torn at where I stand on reading reviews of my own garments.  On one hand, it’s a learning experience. If there is something that isn’t liked, then I can learn to make it better. If there is something that some one loves, then maybe I can incorporate that into more of my designs. However, I’m always afraid of feeling too swayed in my design decisions by the reaction of others.  I really want to keep my design process ‘pure’… plus, I’m sensitive! I have resolved that from well-read sources like The Lingerie Addict, or the Lingerie Lesbian, it is good to read the reviews.

In other news, I simply cannot believe how busy I am.  I keep talking about releasing a bandeau bra pattern, but I can’t seem to step out from beneath my pile of lacy bras and panties! Not a bad thing at all, I am quite content, amazed, and grateful!

Spring Preview!

Uncategorized January 12, 2013
Ok, so winter only really began here in Canada about a month ago, but I’m already thinking spring! Just a few more months and buds will be appearing on trees, birds will be singing, and the sun will start shining again!

I worked on a bunch of super-feminine floral & eyelet lace pieces this week, and have some more vintage inspired pieces up my sleeve, including new camisoles, bodies, rompers, and corsets! Can you tell how excited I am???

So, lots of new pieces coming in the following weeks, just in time to treat yourself to something nice and springy during the dreary month of february.

What is it about January…?

Uncategorized January 9, 2013
What is it about January that is so beautiful, but also horribly… depressing…?  Maybe it’s that the excitement of Christmas and New Years is over, maybe it’s the bleak, cold weather, maybe it’s the lack of sunlight… Whatever it is, January and February always do this to me.
Not that anything is bad; everything is great, at a steady pace.  Business is very busy, Dan’s work is going well, the dog and cat are happy as can be, I have lots of plans and things in the works for Ohhh Lulu and am pulling long days sewing…  However, I feel like my personal life has come to a stand still. I feel like I need to plan something, like a vacation or something… Something for myself to look forward to that doesn’t involve working!

I also have this thing where if things in my life aren’t constantly changing, I get a little bored, and when I get bored, I get depressed.  This is both a great driving force in my life and a huge character flaw – I think it makes me a great entrepreneur,  and it definitely keeps me busy, but it also makes me incredibly fickle and I get bored doing the same thing for too long…  I need constant change! I think I am at the point in my life where I’m married, got the house… and now what? I’m bored!

The thing is, I can’t think of any one thing that I want to do… I don’t really have the urge to travel, other than our summer road trips.  In addition to that, Dan and I do not have the budgets to travel… And, as we’ve discussed before, I don’t have much of a desire to have children, and even I know boredom is not the reason to have kids! So, what else do people do with their lives? 

I think, more than finding something new to do, I need to learn how to deal with the fact that sometimes life stands a little still, and that is ok.  These are the moments that most people would relish…
I took these pictures down at Couchiching Beach Park.  We’ve been going for evening strolls with the dog.  It is so lonely and desolate in the winter. The water has finally frozen and you can’t tell where the land ends and lake begins.  Part of me loves it; serene, quiet, lonely.  Part of me just wants to see kids on the swing sets, and people and dogs playing frisbee.  That will come soon enough and I’ll miss the days when the park was empty…
I have to admit, I really do love winter.  It is sad and beautiful. Pure and Crisp.  Albeit, a little boring… 

Delights!

Uncategorized January 4, 2013
One of the things I love most about shopping on Etsy is the beautiful way items are packaged… You can really tell the care and consideration that these artisans have for their work!
This Christmas I was luck enough to receive a pair of earrings from my Sister in Law that had been on my favorites list for a while! They came from the Canadian Seller, A Pocket full of Posies. I was especially excited to receive these because we are on a team together, and it was nice to receive her work.  
I was totally blown away by how beautifully wrapped these came.  The lace… the paper… the wax seal that reads “For You.”  It just felt so special! The earrings themselves are so lovely and glittery, and a piece that I will get a lot of wear out of.  

Pretties from A Pocket Full of Posies on Etsy

I, myself, did a lot of Christmas Shopping on Etsy this year too.  I got my husband some scrub for his hands (if you know any mechanics, you will know why I got this), my mom a hand painted scarf… and for myself and a couple of other people, I got jewelry from Rare Bird. 

This is what I got for myself… I absolutely love it.