A creative break from making clutches.
Sometimes you just need a break from making clutches. As wonderful and exciting as finding new fabrics and the creative process, once you do it for a living, just like all things, you need a break some times. One of my customers reminded me of that when she commented on a blog post that she was getting back into making clutches after taking a much-needed break.
Speaking of finding new fabrics, look what I just got. I’m working on some new patterns right now. It’s a lot of refinement, but I’ll get there.
Beautiful fabrics in blues, greens, and whites.
Oh, do you guys remember me mentioning about this amazing fabric below? This is a skirt. For a 20-year-old. I’m not 20.
NO way am I getting into this! Maybe – maybe – 20 years ago. That’s a big maybe.
Well, I had envisioned this on me, but as a cross-body clutch. Here’s a preview below. I’ll post about this soon to come.
Much better!
This clutch is a hit with all my friends especially with summer coming up. I still have some more of this fabric and will be working with it to make an 8-inch clutch. Oh what was my point?
With fabric strewn about the house while designing and pieces of thread hanging from my *ss, I just needed a break. Obviously my mind is quite loud and disorganized — unorganized (?) – so I needed a break.
I really encourage that – taking a break. When I take a break, it usually involves any or all of my 3 kids. Can’t just leave them at home to fend for themselves… not for another 8 years! 🙂 A lot of my breaks from work involve traveling. And you know that while we spend our money on having experiences (through travel) and not through accumulating things, vacations are spendy. So a cheap mental break for me that I also have found to ramp up my creative juices is painting figurines with my daughter. It costs me a dollar — one dollar — per figurine for some creative bliss. In the moments that I paint, I cannot focus on anything else but the painting itself. All the other noises seem to fade. It takes me many hours to finish one figurine, so I get to stretch my dollar even farther — further (?)! (Grammar Police can feel free to comment below.) I usually paint for a 45-minute stretch. That’s all I have time for, but it’s still 45 minutes, so I’ll take it!
This is what the figurines look like before they are painted.
For $1! The “before” look. Kinda boring …
This is the “after”…. after hours of painting and layering the paints.
Most of the time, I do what I call “rescues”. Rescues are the figurines that my daughter painted but no longer wants. She just turned seven, and is improving her skills, so let’s just say her figurines need a lot of rescuing! Instead of throwing them out and spending another dollar (OMG, I am tight with money), I use her painted ones and try to fix them up.
Here’s another “before” of the original.
Cute bunny watering into an empty basket? And it has no discernible mouth. Poor bunny rabbit.
Well, Hayley decided to paint it bright pink, because now that she’s out of the tomboy phase, she loves all things pink, princesses and tiaras. Of course!
I did the best that I could. This bunny is really pink! Incidentally, I had made a little mistake with the black paintbrush and it made a mark by the eyes. I went ahead and did that to the other eye, and it makes the eyes look more alive. The use of brown to soften the pink and to provide depth really made a difference.
So why I am blogging about painting figurines? Well, it’s just my cheap mental escape from work that also fuels my creative fire. When you are in business for yourself, you can get lost in just work, and you can work untold hours. I’ve done it. I know you’ve done it as well. Whatever way you can find to get a break, do it. You’ll feel better and more refreshed. Enjoy this creative break. 🙂
This was another rescue.
That “heart” was a chip in the figurine. I decided to highlight it by painting it red like a heart. Doesn’t it look like it’s either a tattoo on Winnie the Pooh, or like he’s puckered up like a geisha or Betty Boop?
One way to get that puckered up look …
I think Winnie the Pooh’s reminds me more of Betty Boop’s pucker!
Awww, love these cute bears! I don’t love my color combination so much…
This could have gone a completely different direction. It could’ve been a pink castle as the hearts and flowers indicate, but I saw Santorini instead.
What do you think? Santorini is on my bucket list just so I can see the blue!
And my favorite figurine is this one. Look at these two guys! I made them to be reb-brown Labs. If this figurine comes back in again, I think I’ll try a lighter look on the dogs and house. How cute are the eyes of the top dog?
Now go and enjoy a break!
Mother’s Day gift of clutch handbags!
It’s a big bouquet of flowers clutches! 🙂
Check out this selection of clutches for Mother’s Day, May 12th. Each clutch has been lovingly and expertly handcrafted by women for moms in mind. Be sure to go to the shop to see other clutches also available and ready to ship in time for Mother’s Day.
The whole album can be found on the WhileBabyNaps Facebook fan page.
In every color and style imaginable, these clutch sellers will have a clutch for that special woman in your life. If you want a custom-made clutch, there’s still time! Go get yours!
Get some swag – $200!
As mentioned before in a previous post, when I get asked to be a sponsor, I really have to weigh the value of what I give to what I get in return. I’d go broke if I said yes to everything. But as my company’s motto is “Putting Women in Business”, I always find a way to make it work when it comes to workshops that teach women a new skill. I was asked to be a sponsor for an inaugural sewing event that took place a couple of weeks ago in North Carolina. Though it was a small group, Sew South made a big impact for all attendees. The enthusiasm from these ladies is amazing and you can see the skills they learned, the friends they met, and the good times they had at this sewing retreat. Check out all photos at this Flickr group. Here’s a snapshot of some of the photos:
Take a look at the new clutches made from the attendees, most of whom were new to making clutches.
- women of all ages (25-65)
- women of all skill levels (some sewing for 6 months, some for 20 years)
- women from around the country (from California to North Carolina, Wisconsin to Florida – even someone from San Juan Puerto Rico!)
- over half of the attendees are bloggers
Even though this retreat was limited to 50 participants, Jennifer, the founder, has opened up a free swag drawing for everyone — including you, my customers and blog readers. Enter here at Sew South Retreat website to win this loot worth $200. There will be 3 lucky winners.
Good luck and I hope one of you get it!!! If you do, let me know.
Winn 🙂
Fabulous Fabric Clutches
That’s the actual description of Catherine’s shop, FabByCab, home to a variety of handmade clutches. I like Catherine’s roomy clutches and sumptuous linings. Her linen clutch wristlets are exemplary little pieces of art.
Who doesn’t like this little birdie?
Got an empress on your Christmas list? This inner lining is a perfect complement. Just beautiful!
This OOAK clutch features Windsor Castle. Any Kate fans out there? 🙂
Lastly, Catherine just debuted many fabulous plaid clutches that are just in time for the holidays and the winter season. You don’t have to a Scotsman to love these plaids! They go well with jeans, red/grey/black sweater and black winter boots!
One of the many plaid clutches new to Catherine’s shop.
Go check Catherine’s shop out! She’s got many ready to ship to you for holiday gift-giving!
Snappy(TM) Wallet clutch – download the latest version!
Hi all from the other side of the world! I made it here fine and after 5 days on the ground, the kids are just starting to adjust to the local time. It’s p.m. here to your a.m. There’s currently 11 hours difference than East Coast time!
I will post pics when I can find my camera cord to the computer. I just got the Internet up and running today so I thought I’d do a quick post before hitting the sack! I’ve been running around getting things done for the house here as we have only what we packed in our luggage. Our air shipment won’t be here for another 10 days. Many things are needed just to make a meal: eg. after I boiled the spaghetti, I realized I didn’t have a strainer, and when I went to cut the mango, I didn’t have a knife. Little things that cause you to improvise… 🙂
Just a note for those who bought the Snappy(TM) Wallet Clutch, please use your existing password to access the tutorial that I recently updated. I revised Step #1 to include a new picture and notes to trim your templates to fit the width of the frame before tracing them onto the interface. What 2 of you have done is cut on the outside edge of the template causing extra length, which can cause puckering. To prevent this, you only have to trim it to fit.
Please go to the PDF Order and sign in to download the most recent tutorial. The templates remain the same. I will make changes and additions to this tutorial and add new templates as time goes on, but please keep your password, which you can use to access it for free. (If you lose it, it will be $5 to resend it to you.)
Thank you for the photos of your Snappy wallet clutches! I love the variations. Keep them coming!
Thanks and I’ll post again soon.
Winn
10% OFF entire purchase at PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com
To thank you for all your support on my new business with my upcycled purse frames at PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com, I am offering 10% OFF your entire purchase at PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com! Per my last blog post, this might be the bit of inspiration needed to kick start your summer creations!
For all of you who find my blogs useful and have followed along and have helped to make my second shop a sweet success, please enter “BLOGVIP” in the coupon code at check out to get an instant 10% off ALL your cart items.
The offer is effective as soon as this blog post hits your email account! It ends Sunday, July 3rd at midnight. That’s a whole week to get 10% OFF, but don’t delay.
I use this Snappy clutch every day ... 🙂
I am just starting to get feedback for the Snappy(TM) wallet clutch tutorial and upcycled frames. Here are some of them:
“Great tutorial!”
“very creative design! How do you come up with it?! Will always be your great fan and supporter.. The pdf is easy to understand and very detailed. I love how she upcycled and came out with a very creative design. If you have trouble understanding it, just ask, any of the sisters will gladly help you through it~”
“Very easy to retrieve instructions. Thanks so much.”
“Congratulations on another great shop! You are so inspirational and encouraging!! Keep up the great work, I love to see women succeed, and even better when women help other women as you are doing. You Rock!!”
“Cannot WAIT to try out the new pattern with the frame!! I’m so glad you were able to get this new shop up and running so quickly – I’m trying just 5, to see how they will go over with my customers, but I have a feeling I’ll need more – at least I HOPE so! Congratulations, Winn – another WIN product for you! Take care!”
“Hi Win, I love this wallet! Looking forward to trying out the pattern soon. 🙂 Thanks so much…”
“yay! You listed it! Congrats!”
Oh, here’s a little trivia for you … I was going to trademark it as the Milk Run(TM) wallet clutch — since I’m always running out to get milk for my 3 kids … and this design allowed me to carry my essentials for my milk runs! I still might use that trademark for another design though.
This new design is much simpler to do than the Classic Day Clutch(TM), the TeaTime(TM) clutch, or especially, the Baguette(TM) Clutch. In my design, I actually tried to design it to be done without any sewing since one of my customer’s friends was hospitalized and needed a skill to pick up and something to do while in the hospital. Sadly, I couldn’t make this without a sewing machine, but the amount of sewing needed is very minimal. I’m really happy with how it was constructed.
So I hope you will make use of your beautiful bits of fabric and give this a try! I would love to see the many varieties out there.
On another update … let me keep you up-to-date on my move … though it seems like I’ve been talking about this forever!
Photo courtesy of http://freight-logistics.com/
As I’ve told everyone in January of this year, my family and I are moving to Viet Nam! Actually, my husband’s been living there since March, and I’ve been in New Jersey with the kids putting the house up for rent (we finally got renters – YAY) and the kids just finished the school year on Friday!
*The packers are coming tomorrow and they are packing everything up! We will be staying in a nearby hotel for a week.
*Tonight, we’re packing things we need for the hotel and short-term 2-3 weeks.
*Tomorrow, they pack and ship our air shipment which will take 2 weeks to get to Viet Nam and another 5 days to clear Customs.
*Tues, they are packing the sea shipment — all of our household goods — which will take 2 months to make it to our new home in Viet Nam.
*Weds. they are packing the rest that will be put into storage here in New Jersey that we are not taking. I don’t think we’ll have much left … but you never know.
*Thurs., the carpet cleaners are coming and so are the housecleaners.
*Friday is the walk-through with my tenants and they move in!
*Saturday, me and my family fly out to Viet Nam.
*On July 14th, Canine Carriers will pick up Pax from my dog sitter and fly him to Viet Nam. We’ll get him on July 16th. He’ll be in a temperature-controlled cargo with an airline that transfers pets all over the world. He’ll have comfort stops and water for the trip.
*And on July 16th, after Pax is with us, I will breathe! 🙂
I cannot wait to take pictures and show you my new adventures in Viet Nam. We are really going to venture out and just take advantage of all Viet Nam has to offer! We’ll be there for 3 years, but the kids and I might come back earlier due to the school year, just like we stayed here later as well. I will be hunting for fabrics like it’s going out of style!
And how great is this? My two best girlfriends are both moving to Asia within a month of me moving to Viet Nam! Lisa, a principal in Oklahoma City, just got a job teaching 4th graders in Shanghai! And Kimberly, a stay-at-home mom of 3, is moving to Japan due to her husband’s job as well! Could I be any luckier? 🙂 (Name the character and show who says his lines in that intonation!)
Have a great rest of the week! I’ll keep you posted as always.
~Winn
WOW! You guys are quick! … Introducing PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com
Man, I did not know that WordPress also sends out an email on password-protected posts, too. Sorry about that guys!
And boy, you guys are quick! 🙂
And no, the newest password-protected post will NOT work with your current password since it is a separate PDF tutorial that I’m launching with my new PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com business.
I just got done with the PDF tutorial and the templates for that.
As I’ve mentioned a while ago (OMG, I’m soooooooo swamped with the move and the kids), I am launching a new business. It will be up within 2 weeks! (Well, it has to since I’m moving out of the country and all…) *hehe* No pressure!
Here’s a sneak peek to you all first:
Introducing the new Snappy(TM) wallet clutch!
Q: What is PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com?
A: It’s my secondary business that I’m launching that will allow me to up-cycle my frames. These frames were from my sister shop, WhileBabyNaps.Etsy.com.
Q: What kinds of frames are sold at PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com?
A: After years of inspecting for the finest frames at WhileBabyNaps.Etsy.com, we have amassed a trove of frames that while the kisslock balls, hinges, and inner surfaces are still good, the outside surface has little marks that render them defective for our high-end line of frames sold at WhileBabyNaps.Etsy.com and used by the finest clutch makers. The cost to ship, melt, and re-work these defective frames were too costly on the pocketbook and environment. We have saved them so that we can still work with a subset of these defective frames.
Q: How have they been used before?
A: Frames like these had been donated and sold at a discount privately for those in need (single moms, women who lost their jobs, women who were otherwise in need of side income but didn’t have the money). We finally have enough to do this on a large scale.
Q: Why can’t I buy your frames from WhileBabyNaps.Etsy.com to make the Snappy(TM) wallet clutch?
A: You still can, but why not pay a fraction of the full price for defective frames when you will not see the defects in your final product? You pay less, and we get to up-cycle our fine frames with defects.
Q: What else do I need to know?
A: *They are all trademarks of WhileBabyNaps.Etsy.com and Khuong LLC.
*They are NOT returnable to PurseFramesOutlet.Etsy.com OR WhileBabyNaps.Etsy.com.
*They have all been tested for lead and they all have a proprietary 2-coat process that allows you to wipe off fingerprints easily.
*They were made in the same high standards, but had been weeded out for their minor defects from shipping or otherwise.
I am so thrilled to be launching this to you all first. This new design will add another product to your lines of clutches. It’s easier to make, adds another price point, AND….
*Lowers your material cost by having lower priced purse frames.
*Lowers your material cost because you can use scrap fabric from other projects.
*Lower your material cost because you can use the less expensive quilting cottons that are perfect for this project and are easily found at your local shops.
And lower material costs means a BIGGER PROFIT for you!
Thank you for your support of using our fine frames (however defective) because it also allows us to up-cycle these otherwise great frames.
So stay tuned! It will launch within 2 weeks. It will start shipping out June 21. I will keep you posted and you will be the first to know!
About
I am the #1 US seller of purse frames and I’ve been incorporated since 2001. This blog is mainly aimed at my audience of clutch handbag makers. I have a very small niche that is comprised of 99.9% women. I am loyal and promote handbag makers who are loyal to me by using my fine purse frames. When they are successful, then I am successful.
The two businesses that I own are:
*purse supplies, Gutermann glue, and DIY clutch kits at whilebabynaps.etsy.com, whilebabynaps.com
*up-cycled purse supplies PurseFramesOutlet.etsy.com
To find clutches made using my fine metal purse frames, LOOK to see “Trademarks of WhileBabyNaps.com and H&D LLC” and you’ll know the clutches are made using the finest metal purse frames that are tested for lead and that have a protective coating to lengthen the life of the clutch. You can go to any of the sellers on the Sellers page.
****NOTE: If you want someone to make a clutch for you, please contact any of my sellers and inquire. They will gladly make custom orders!****
Interested in reaching my audience? Advertise. Contact me here.
Thank you for stopping by for a look.
Warmly,
Thy Khuong
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