Sunday, August 21, 2011

Excuse #38

I haven't posted anything new on Etsy in a few days.  I haven't finished my tutorial.  I haven't made any new products.  Sheer laziness?  No.  Unmotivated?  No.  Uninspired?  Definitely not.  The reason is simple.  And sad, really.  My studio, my beautiful craft studio, a room all to myself where I can leave out all my projects and materials, and never worry about anyone complaining about the mess, is in the basement.  So?  Well, after a few heavy rains this past week, we recently discovered a drainage issue, and the ship, as they say, has taken on water.  Boo.  My craft studio was spared (thank goodness!).  But the room right in front of the studio had to have the carpet taken out and dried out, and all sorts of other fixes.  So, while there is no problem in my studio, I can't actually get in because the door is blocked by a big wad of carpeting.  The good news in all of this is 1) we found the source of water entry, and the fix is pretty easy.  And 2) I had my printers drawer and every spool of ribbon out of the studio before the leak occured, so I was able to finish my ribbon reorganization.  Now I just have to photograph the final product and write a bit about it!

Believe me, as soon as I can get back in my studio, I will!

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Organization is key

In trying to come up with relevant and interesting topics to blog about, and potentially write tutorials about, I decided that ribbon-ry and hairbow-ery isn't where it's at. It isn't all that interesting or groundbreaking. And heck, let's face it...anything you want to know about making hair accessories can already be found online. It's where I learned all the basics.

I needed to find just the right thing to tutorialize, and by George, I think I found it! Creative organization! I was inspired by one of my recent projects to organize all five gazillion spools of ribbon that seemingly have no place in my craft studio. I am still in the process of this project, but wanted to give a heads up that a tutorial is forthcoming. I've been documenting my project with photos, and it's nearly ready to debut.

Here's a sneak peak...

I'm repurposing, upcycling, dumpster diving (or rather, saving something from the dumpster)...whatever yawannacallit...this:
 


To organize this:
 


The wheels are spinning, and I am coming up with other blog tutorial ideas that can transcend craft room organization, and just might inspire those just looking for interesting ways to use a space.

Until the next time... Craft on!

Friday, August 12, 2011

Tutorials

One thing I really love about blogs in the crafting community is the availability of high quality tutorials.  Don't get me wrong, I've run into my share of mediocre tutorials that leave out a lot of important details (or include blatent miscalculations), but for the most part, I've had great success using tutorials to learn new techniques or find inspiration for projects.



One of my new favorite websites is loaded with vintage patterns and sewing tutorials.  I gush over the patterns, and dream of having time to make my own piping.  Someday!  But for now, I visit Colette Patterns and find inspiration.  You should, too!

One of my visions for this blog is to offer high quality tutorials that will inspire the crafty-at-heart.  I hope to have my first tutorial  posted soon!

Monday, August 8, 2011

Grand Re-Opening

After having the baby, I took an extended hiatus from Miss B Accessories. I am really excited to fire up the ol' Etsy shop once again. I have a million design ideas in my head, and I am being very intentional about carving out studio time so I can create! I will be adding new inventory to my Etsy shop every day, so please check back frequently. Here's one of my latest creations, which I think is absolutely adorable: