I'm taking the leap and moving my blog here

The archives of both my blogs will remain here but I hope you will join me in my new adventures.

Many Thanks!

Katie

Clearing the Way for Clearance

I've spent a fair amount of time today updating my Etsy shop.  It's been kind of neat to see how things have begun to evolve.  

For example, I think the tote bags that I was working on recently are so superior to the ones I made last year.  My sewing has improved but I also think my approach to designing the bags has improved.  I chose to make bags that are a uniform size and I took the time to put pockets on both sides of the bags.  I also was able to find larger upholstery fabric samples to work with so the front and back of the bags match.  So now I have a bag recipe to work from.  Figuring all this out feels like a big step forward to me.  

It's also led me to create a clearance section in my Etsy shop.  It just seems like it's time to celebrate what's new by letting go of what's still hanging around.  I've marked stuff way down so have a look.  There's likely to be more things added over the next few days.

I'm in the middle of a post production clean up in my craft room and this is really freeing.  I haven't done a big clean up since before the holidays so this is really necessary.  I'm trying to focus on some wise words that were shared with me by other crafters.  I do not have to make everything for everyone.  The notion of narrowing my focus and picking a few things to make that I enjoy making, is totally obvious and brilliantly simple.  It's also making the clean up go much more quickly.

I leave you with this picture of the new bags in my shop and the many things they can carry.  I know my pictures still need work but I like the idea of this picture if not the way I executed it.

T-Shirt Yarn DIY Medley Kit Instructions

Click on images to get a closer look at each. Hope this helps!

Getting Done What needs to Get Done

After doing such a good job of keeping my blog updated weekly, I fell down on the job last week.  I confess that after 6 1/2 weeks of my husband being on strike, the news of the tentative agreement on Friday, May 27th left me giddy and slightly unable to focus.  All the anxiety, which had been propelling me at a truly manic pace, slipped away and I found myself in need of a break.

Along the way, I got some projects done that had been languishing far too long, like this dog bed cover for Oreo.  It's essentially just a rectangle with elastic around the edge but it works so much better  than what I had been using.  Clearly he is a pretty big fan of it.

Although I didn't get the listing for special order memory quilts live in my shop yet, I did get a special order for one from my sister's boyfriend! I'm pretty excited about the possibilities.  I'm just getting started on it and it is still very much in the planning stage, which is what takes most of the time anyway.

Time to get back on track!




I also

Pillows!

What a week it has been!  I managed to get a ton of stuff done like this pillow that I has started last week.  First pic is a front view, 2nd is the back side.  Its an envelope style cover.

I'm so pleased with the way this came out.  As I had hoped, I was able to get this done in time for the Maker Expo on Saturday and it featured prominently in my display.

This was really one of the first times I did a display like this and I was pretty pleased.  The response was pretty good.  From my point of view, getting the word out is almost as important as making a sale when you're this early in the game.   I think I was able to make some good connections with fairly local places that host classes too, which I hadn't expected.

Thanks to some extra time I put in earlier in the week, I had custom order listings live in my shop for Memory Pillows and T-shirt Memory Rugs.  I still need to make one for custom Memory Throw Quilts but that didn't stop me from putting together a flyer for those three items to give out at the Maker Expo.  The construction of this did not go smoothly, my printer and my laptop decided they hated each other.  My son saved the day without lecturing me about how I should have gotten this done sooner, a song I've sang to him many times.  I was very grateful.

The plan was to make two of the pillows and I am thrilled to report that the second pillow got finished yesterday.  So many people this weekend talked about how much they loved the pockets on the pillows and how they would store their remotes in them.  I honestly hadn't considered them for any practical use, I just liked the way they looked but it does seem like a great idea.

Looking to the week ahead, I'm not sure how much sewing I'll be able to get done for the shop.  I've got some very unglamorous mending projects to get done, including sewing new elastic on my son's bed sheet, fixing buttons that are falling off a sweater, fixing a button band on another sweater the way it should have been done in the first place and hemming a shower curtain.  My big shop goal for the week is to get the custom memory quilt listing live.  

Have a great week!

What Inspires Me

This past week was very productive.  I was able to get at least 8 bags and liners cut out.  If you've been following me on Instagram, you've already seen these but if not, enjoy!  The floral fabric and the owl fabric are the liners.



I was thinking a lot about what inspires me to create.  In the case of these bags, I love the way the lining fabric peeks out a bit.  I wanted to find a way to use these fabrics as liners, especially the owls.

Another project I started working on this week that I'm finding really inspiring is a set of throw pillows.  They are clearly a memory project as they are being made from strips of clothing.

I find that I really enjoy planning and creating projects like this.  I like the challenge of fitting the disparate pieces together in a way that celebrates memories.  This will become a simple envelope pillow case.  Here's how it's turning out so far.

I think this type of project will become a special order option in my shop.  I'm heading to the CCLD Maker Expo this weekend and I'll be bringing this pillow.  I'm curious to see how it is received. 

Mondays are Hard!

I confess, I could barely roll myself out of bed this morning to make coffee.  There was no way I could blog given that I could barely form a sentence.  We got in very late last night after a trip to the Adirondacks and it just took me forever to settle down and get to sleep.  As a result, I've spent the day operating in a bit of a daze.

This week my schedule is bit strange as I'm covering for a coworker.  As a result, I'm going into work late tomorrow, leaving early Wednesday and working Saturday.  I'm going to have to be super organized to get  everything done that I need to get done.

I'm really happy with the amount of t-shirt yarn I currently have in my shop so I think it is time to switch gears and start working on other things.  Project bags are next on my agenda along with some zipper pouches.  The plan is to use denim and upholstery fabric to create these.  I've got two very specific designs in mind.  Now if only I can avoid distractions!

Ultimately, I need a better answer when people ask "what can you make with your t-shirt yarn?"  Here's the interesting thing, I don't make much with the relatively thin, bulky weight t-shirt yarn that I sell.  This thickness of t-shirt yarn evolved out of two other makers' requests.  When I make rugs   I use yarn that is about 3 times thicker.  Rather than re-invent the wheel, I'm going to head over to Ravelry and do a little research.  I'd like to come up with some answers that are better than, "Let me show you what my friend Kristina made..."  (Not that I don't love showing off the beautiful things she makes.  In fact, you should stop reading this post and go visit her website.  She's amazing, right?)

So my plan ultimately centers around creating a list of patterns that work well with my t-shirt yarn.  I do have some test knitting that I had done on slippers that I was really pleased with.  Maybe it's almost time to create a Saved by Kate Ravelry group so we can share ideas or host knit alongs or look for test knitters?

Actually that brings me to an interesting thing I've noticed.  Blogs and Ravelry seem to be interactive in a more meaningful way than Instagram or Facebook.  I can't tell you how many times I've posed a question on both Instagram and Facebook and only been met with likes rather than responses.  I suspect people often don't get beyond the image to the words.  I must ponder this as I decide if I need another thing to keep track of.  Thoughts?

I leave you with this lovely picture of my latest entry into my shop, Desert Sun, a colorway hand dyed by me.

Better Late Than Never!

I confess that this past week very much matches my description of the prior week.  I'm just pushing through to get as much done as I possibly can.

I've enlisted the help of my husband with some of the t-shirt yarn making process.  This has added a rather comical element to things.  I confess, I'm a control freak.  Currently, he is only allowed to stretch the t-shirt yarn and hopefully, one day, he'll learn that it doesn't require Herculean strength.  A gentle tug will do the job nicely.  In the interim, you might see some smaller skeins in the shop every now and then.  Like this one.

I've also begun to schedule some events which is both gratifying, because people want to see my stuff, and terrifying, because people are going to see my stuff!!  It really seemed like it was time to take this next step.  The first event I will be attending is a Maker Expo at the end of May.  This is not a selling event, although you can take orders.  It is billed more as a demonstration event.  More on my plans for that next week.

I've completed cutting and almost completed stretching the dyed batch of t-shirt yarn thanks to some help from my hubby.  I'm hoping to have that in the shop by the end of the week.  Actually, I'm hoping to have it in the shop by Thursday but I'll settle for the end of the week.  Looking forward, I hope to transition to working on some bags in the near future but it might not happen before next week.  Also there's the rug recipe to finish working on.

In other news, the debacle that is my workspace is slowly evolving and I do mean slowly.  Its hard to find time to organize while you're busy making so instead I've been moving stuff from side to side, from flat surface to other flat surface.  Jim took pity on me this weekend and moved stuff out of the room to help me get a jumpstart.  It's much improved but much of it is still in the hallway.  At least now, as I make  things I can put them where they belong and there's several clear flat surfaces to rest my coffee mug on.

There's a really delicate balance going on in my world right now as I juggle teaching yoga, working at the sewing shop, running my Etsy shop and family life.  My hours at have increased which is great given my husband's current lack of a paycheck (thanks Verizon, you greedy bastards) but its also taking its toll a bit.  I'm working hard to set reasonable goals for myself.

So with that in mind, I'm going to step away from the computer and go hang out with my hubby, watch an old movie and knit on my Tanhouse Brook Shawl which I am loving!  It's hard to see shawl pics when they're still on the needles but here's a peek.

See you next week!

Lights, Camera , Action!

As promised, here I am again.  It has been a week of just pushing through to get stuff done, even when all I'd like to do is sit on the couch and knit.

I am working my way through a backlog of t-shirts, slowly making them into t-shirt yarn to put in my shop.  Knowing that these t-shirts are all clean and ready to be made into yarn has been wonderful for me.  I'm falling into this rhythm of prepping a shirt or two (or 6) after work and each night doing another piece of the prepping process.

This chipping away at things approach allowed me to do a shop update yesterday.  Given that last week left me no large chunk of time to work on shop things and Saturday was spent visiting an out of town college, that feels amazing.

Here's a peek at a portion of that shop update:



You might also notice a change in my shop pictures.  That's because I've finally unpacked the light kit that arrived a week or two ago.  I am no master at this lighting thing but what a difference even my incompetent set up made in my photos!  I'll need to work on that but I'm so pleased overall.

I spent a good portion of yesterday dyeing plain white t-shirts that I had been saving.  I have a cache of dyes that I'm working my way through trying to learn dyeing technique.  Here's a peek at the results of that and some future t-shirt yarn

I'm quite pleased with the results both of the dyeing and the photo.  Now I must get ready for work.  See you in a week.  

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Motivation & Introspection

One could say that I'm not very good at this blogging thing and they would be right.  Not long after that last post I went on vacation and, when I got back, I started a new job that has kept me hopping.  The job is a good fit, I get to be around creative people all day but I'm tired at the end of the day and by the time I get in a little work for my shop, I don't have much energy left for blogging.  In fact, after the holidays, I barely had time or energy to update my shop.

All that changed last week when my husband went on strike.  He's one of 39,000 Verizon employees walking the picket line.  Rather than talk about the anxiety that produces, because its a little too obvious to comment on, I'd rather talk about the motivation it has provided me with.  It really got me thinking about my goals and how I want to move forward.

The introspection actually started a few weeks ago as I was working on this special order t-shirt rug.  I started thinking about pattern recipe that I've developed for making these rugs.  For the first time, I took extensive notes on my process.  I've always jotted notes down but this time I really paid attention.  I even tweaked my technique to improve the overall look.  Honestly, that change was so obvious I'm ashamed to admit it.  In the end, my customer was really happy with the rug and so was I.

My goals as far as the t-shirt rugs go are to phase the pre-made ones out of my shop, offer special order ones to customers made out of their own t-shirts as this one was and to have the pattern recipe for sale by mid-May so you can make your own masterpiece.

Another thing this rug project got me pondering was how to maximize the t-shirt yarn that I can get from one shirt.  I needed to use every bit of the t-shirts sent by my customer to make sure I had enough to make the rug size he wanted.  I played with different cutting techniques to accomplish this and eventually found that joining smaller strips was the way to go.  This experimentation for the rug led me to make this joined yarn ball.  Its still an experimental process as

far as I'm concerned.  I'm going to wait for some feedback from the customer who bought it before making more but I'm really excited about the potential of the process.

I also had a question from a potential customer about how thin I could make the t-shirt yarn.  I experimented a bit yesterday and discovered that, although the cotton t-shirts I prefer to work with don't like to be much thinner than I'm already cutting them, I can get a cotton polyester blend t-shirt as thin as 1/10 of an inch.  As with the joined ball, I'm still considering this an experimental process but I'm hopeful that the potential customer will agree to take this first ball, use it and offer some feedback.

I have other goals in mind but this post is running long and I need to get ready to go to work.  I'll save some of my other thoughts on how I want to move forward for my next post.  Speaking of my next post, I'm going to aim for a weekly post done on Monday mornings.  So I'll see you in this space again on the 25th, I promise!

That Worked Out Well!

Well all that work last week, winding the last of the yarn balls and sewing little bags, paid off nicely this morning.  An order came in and all I had to do was pack it and print the shipping label.  That was a real timesaver.

I'm starting to suspect my use of a ridiculous amount of packing tape on each package may be negating the good I'm doing using upcycled paper grocery bags to ship in.  I'm going to explore commercially made packing envelopes and see if I can come up with a better option.

I've had quite a few other things on my plate this week that have slowed down some of my goals for the shop but here's a sneak peak and the gray t-shirts that were soaked in the leftover dye from the Summer Sunset t-shirt yarns.  The lighting is not fabulous but you get to see a bit of the process.  These lovelies should appear in the shop Thursday afternoon.

Stretching

 Getting ready to wind

You get a peek at my work area too and you might notice, there's a whole lot of stuff going on there.  So many ideas, so little time!

I've been looking on Ravely for patterns that make good use of bulky and super bulky yarns and found The Wildflower Headband by Sophie Scott.  I am itching to give this a try.  Looks like it will be a pretty quick knit once I actually sit down and do it.  I might actually take one of the Summer Sunset skeins out of the shop to do it.  We'll see.

Still working towards increasing my inventory for a craft fair entry.  I think I can, I think I can...

In personal crafting news, I've made more socks!

And I have another pair on the needles.  My dog, Oreo, loves to sit in my lap whenever I knit. 

What's on your crafty agenda for the week?

Striving for Consistency

I spent the last two days getting my shop updated with the loveliness that was last week's dyeing experiment.

I've dubbed this Summer Sunset and, while I love the way it came out, I'm not at all confident that I could replicate it.  Consistency like that will come with time, at least I hope it will.  If you love it, get over to the shop and get yours while it lasts.

Speaking of consistency, I finally took the time to wind up the last of the original yarn balls on my ball winder.  They are now all center pull skeins, happily nesting in their very own drawstring bags, with business card tags on them.  As I say on each listing:  

Yarn is wound into a center pull ball and packaged in a reusable, drawstring bags made from a t-shirt sleeve to keep your yarn tidy and tangle free while you work with it.

This benefits me as well.  Now all my t-shirt yarn just needs to be packaged for shipping and its ready to go.  That having been said, what a lot of work it was to get it all done.  The worst part was, it felt redundant.  The difference of course was that this time it was getting done in a way that really works best.  That didn't stop the temper tantrum that was going on in my head though.  Looking back on that picture, maybe making 18 bags is a pretty good accomplishment.

I also did some much needed updating in my pictures and descriptions today with a goal of making things more consistent.  I stuck with the t-shirt yarn section for today but I got some feedback from other sellers about other sections that need attention as well.  I plan to make those changes in the very near future.  Feedback is so scary to ask for but so important...but mostly scary.

Dyeing to Try or Trying to Dye

I've been working to replenish my t-shirt yarn stock in my shop, not the plain colors but the funky ones.  T-shirt yarn made from tie dye t-shirts never lasts very long in there.  What's a girl to do when there's no guarantee of finding tie dye t-shirts at the thrift store?  She can try dyeing some of the seven gazillion white t-shirts filling thrift store aisles.

That was my task today.  I had some dyes on hand that were also a thrift store find and I'd already destroyed a canning pot with a dye bath a while back, so I was ready for action.  

Here are the results drying on the clothesline.

A closer peek

You can expect these to make their way into my shop on Monday.  

Overall, I'm pleased with the results.  I wasn't thrilled with the process.  Chemical dyes stink, literally and rinsing out the dye until the water runs clear wastes a ridiculous amount of water to my way of thinking.  I wound up using the washing machine to do this and I still feel like the amount of dye coming out was endless.  I still have some chemical dye left but I lean toward exploring natural dyes in the near future.  

Since I still have some of this dye batch left, I've got some gray t-shirts soaking in it.  I'm curious to see what they look like.  Every time I've made gray t-shirt yarn it just looks grungy and unappealing to me and my efforts to bleach dye gray t-shirts have been utter failures.  The gray never changes color with the bleach!  How is that even possible??

The other discovery I made was that the blade on my rotary cutter was insanely dull.  What a difference a new blade made! 

Happy weekend to all!

The Road Ahead

I really enjoy listening to podcasts when I'm crafting.  I'm hooked on some of the usual suspects like Serial, Undisclosed and This American Life.  I'm also hooked on some crafty, maker related podcasts like Prairie Girls Knit and Spin, the Knitmore Girls and, most recently, Have Company.

I confess, I've been binge listening to Have Company since the end of last week.  Its really inspiring to hear the variety of guests Marlee Grace has on.  After listening to a wide variety of artists and makers, my wheels really started turning.  I started pondering different aspects of my shop and the direction of my shop.

In my mind, the earliest beginnings of Saved by Kate date back to denim quilts made for my sons' bunk beds.  First my sons, then my daughter, then my daughter's boyfriend, then my other daughter, then my sister, then my daughter's new boyfriend...one quilt organically led to the next one.

The memory quilts have followed a similar path, one that feels like a natural progression, rather than a business plan.  Yet a business plan is what it has become.  A close friend, and my first paying customer, just responded to pictures of my latest effort with, "you are really an extraordinary crafter of these and must continue to market them to the paying customer."  Given that she is an amazingly talented seamstress, my heart is singing (or screaming, OMG, OMG, OMG!!!!!)

So what does this all amount to in practice?  Well, yesterday I took a deep breath and put some business cards out on 2 community bulletin boards.  This morning when someone in my yoga class asked what I was doing later, I told her I was sending my latest memory quilt off to its owner and offered to show pictures.  I ended up showing her several of my projects.  In a sense I outed myself to the class, which is something I need to do more often.  I've gotten good at this in some venues and remain not so good in others.  The conversation this morning was a good first step.

For the future?  I need to replenish my t-shirt yarn a bit.  I'm working on a prototype for a possible class.  There's a fairly local craft show that I think would be a great venue for me but I need to see how much inventory I can build up before applying.  In the just for me category, I'm knitting socks, lots of socks and their mine, all mine!!

I leave you with two pics of the finished memory quilt.  (I'm still working on the photography piece of this, especially the lighting.)  Let me know what you think.

Finally, an Update!

Its certainly been a lot longer than a week since my last post.  Yeesh, time gets away from me sometimes.  Time to get back on track.

I've been busy with some special orders, like this bag from a pair of embellished pants.

Also this memory quilt, which is coming together nicely.  

There is a rhythm when I making memory quilts.  The beginning is always fumbly as I try to make a plan that brings together pieces of clothing that are vastly different in color, style and fabric content while honoring the memory of the person (in the case of one's I've done for people who've lost loved ones) or the time of life (as in the case of one's I've done for people to remember their time on a team or at college).  Sometimes I'm given guidelines and sometimes I'm given a free hand.  The challenge, in either case, remains the same.  How can I make this come together?  At some point things begin to click and then it seems the project takes on a life of its own.  It becomes intuitive, which is so exciting to me.

In other news, here are two recent additions to the shop:

A string bag, fully lined and made from upcycled pillowcases

A larger, brightly colored t-shirt yarn area rug

Finally, the biggest news of all.  I have finally set up calculated shipping on the larger items in my shop.  Why should you care?  Well, for most people, it makes the shipping significantly cheaper.  I'm curious to see how this change affects sales, or if it affects sales.  I don't know why this was such a challenge for me to set up but now that its done I feel like Wonder Woman.

Now I'm off to finish that memory quilt...

Getting the Word Out

Selling the stuff you make isn't for sissies, that's for sure.  There's a euphoric high whenever I make a sale followed by a a period of questioning during the inevitable quiet period that follows.  It makes me nuts.  The fact is, you can't sell your stuff if no one sees your stuff.  

So with that in mind, I've joined the ranks of those posting on Instagram, you can find me as savedbykate.  Trying to get the word out in picture form.  I've given a huge amount of thought to how to stage my pictures to show my wares in their useful best.  I think I'm getting better at it.

Here are a few examples of my improved picture layout/taking:

Its not perfect but it is much improved from my humble beginnings.  So better pictures are step one for me, now its on to networking to get my name out there.

T-shirt Yarn in a Bag

All along, I have been shipping my t-shirt yarn packaged in little drawstring bags made from t-shirt sleeves.  Up until yesterday, I didn't publicize this.  It didn't occur to me that it was necessary or important.  I thought of it as a nice little surprise for my customers.

Similarly, I began winding all my t-shirt yarn into center pull balls once I got a ball winder (and figured out to use it, why is that so hard? ?)  Again, not something I publicized until recently.

The response to my packaging technique has been really positive.  One customer went so far as to call it "mindful".  So with my latest shop update, I've revealed these two features.

You order this:

It arrives all snug and neat, looking like this:

Since the balls are all center pull, they can be kept in their bags as you work on your projects.  Unlike commercial yarn, which can offer a challenge only an explorer would enjoy, my yarn comes with a tag attached to the end you need to pull to start your yarn.  Its user friendly, start to finish.

I'm also trying something new this week by offering the yarn pictured above as a collection, a rainbow collection to be precise.  I'm offering the 7 balls together at a bulk discounted price to reward the larger order.  I'm curious to see what the response will be.

Also new this week:

Stop by SavedbyKate, check them out and let me know what you think.