Where can I cut?

[peanut]

Okay, he was here. He really wants to do the dress. I gave him the option of backing out if he thought he was in over his head. He said he really wanted to try it. I gave him a few suggestions on the front panel (he's doing a kind of woven look around the bodice/waist area. Let him take my Mistyfuse to make the application work better. Loaned him the book on sewing silk. He's going to read it while on vacation the next two weeks.

The mockup didn't fit too well, but that's what they're for. I decided to get rid of the sleeves. He was relieved. And I needed the shoulders taken in, and the waist raised, front hem raised, and the upper back let out. What can I say...I'm 52 and things just aren't in the Barbie doll format anymore!

He's going to do a bunch of trials with the fabric when he gets back from vacation. In the meantime, I'm ordering some more silk of lesser quality for a lining. We decided it would be easier for me to get into and out of the dress if it were lined. He's staunchly resisting putting in a zipper. I hope it will work without one, but I'm not convinced. We'll see...

My consolation on all this...if it doesn't work I'm not out for the dress fabric other than what I ordered today ($15). The other fabric was given to me. I told him, if he ruins the silk and can't fix it, to give me a couple week's notice so I can buy a dress for the wedding. He laughed at that. That was when he told he was going to practice with it. So I think he will do okay with it. He said he has done samples on silk in his classes in design school. So that is good.

Ordering the silk lining gave me an excuse to put in an order with Dharma Trading Co. for more rug hooking and dyeing supplies.

ETA: I've been busy the last 24 hours trying to figure out YNAB and setting it up to work properly for me. Still can't figure out why it says I am over budgeted in my accounts when I have money to spare in them. I've gone through the budget part of the program and entered budgets where I'd forgotten to put them in. Still hasn't solved the problem. Don't know what to do now. Trying to get DD#1 to help. She used to use this program. Anyone else know what I might be doing wrong? I'm trying to make sure all income into the accounts is designated income for that month or the next. It SHOULD work, but for some reason does not.

[PurpleSnowflake]

I've had one in mind for frugality for a long time. But DH is oppositional-defiant when it comes to my being associated with frugality. He runs the other way and spends money. So it's not a good topic for me to create a name for myself in!

Ofcourse this is a REAL issue for many women in the world and would actually make a good book. You can always use a "pen name" to keep annonymous!

[peanut]

In the process of putting in an order today for rug hooking/dyeing supplies, I found my American Express card no longer works. So I am just going to cut it up and toss it. I tried to phone them to talk about it, but got answering machine He** and couldn't get a live person without some sort of password I never recall ever having set. So it's gonzo. Don't need it anyways. VISA is good around the world.

[peanut]

Talked to a friend who has published her own cookbook and has helped other writers get published. She pointed me to copyright law that says no recipe idea or list of ingredients can be copyrighted. Also no cooking method can be copyrighted. I just have to be sure to change the write up for the directions so it's all in my own words. No problem. I find most directions to be overly wordy anyways!

Onward and upward with the cookbook.

PSF: you hit on a good point. I think I'll go forward with the frugal tips book anyways. I'm hoping these will be cheap e-books people can read and use to help them bring their budgets under control.

Also, scored 3 free boxes of fabric on Full Circles today. Kept half of it. It was woolen skirts and curtain fabric I can use for rug hooking and making hanging sleeves for my rugs.

[peanut]

Today:

~ Looked for and found website design notes from workshops I took a few years ago. Also found CARFAC notes and WES (Women Entrepreneurs of Saskatchewan) notes. All useful for this little business I am trying to set up. I want to read through the notes and make sure I have all my ducks in a row before having my friend create a website for me.

~ Pulled together another e-book called Affordable Food. Working on formatting it right now. Want to add some photos too. Spoke with boarder and she's going to help remind me to take photos of food for the GF, DF, SF cookbook before we eat it! I've renamed the cookbook Cooking for Health: GF, DF, SF.

~ Reading Ready for Anything by David Allen. It's helping me move past some simple blocks I have to getting things done this week.

~ Emailed partner-in-crime re: sale display. I have had a friend look at the photos and make some suggestions. Emailed another friend who has done lots of craft sales and am awaiting her response. We are going to be running tight under the wire this weekend. We have 3 long days, with long rides, and only one car to haul stuff.

~ Went for a walk and took photos of some yards that interested DH when we went to look at the fireworks July 1st. I had the camera then, but it was too dark to take decent photos of the yards. Tonight I'll show them to him.

~ Went online and searched for glicee printers for art cards. Found one I will be using I think. It is expensive. I won't be doing it for awhile. Still, I also went through my rug photos and picked the ones I would put on cards if I could.

~ Checked the cost of a subscription to "International Artist" (the library doesn't get it) and subscribed. It was recommended to me by an artist friend who knows my work and where I need help.

~ Washing the woollen skirts to take apart for rug hooking. Lots of good fabric there!

~ Received a gift of fibre from an online friend.

~ And supper is in the crock-pot.

Taking a break at the moment and then I'm onto more things on my list.

[peanut]

Well!!! My break ended up being an hour and a half long nap! Didn't think I was THAT tired. Well the rest of supper is cooking. DH will be home soon. A man will be coming about the fence. Then I have to go out. The rest of my day is shot. Will have to get back to my list of things to do tomorrow...unless I can get onto things after I get home tonight...

[peanut]

Spent some time this morning talking to my partner-in-crime. Saw her last night and she seemed overwhelmed. Apparently she had some orders from the sale last weekend. So she did pretty well I think. But she is overwhelmed. As she put it, "It's a lot more work than I thought". I suggested we not do 2 sales two weekends in a row again, but that we pick and choose sales. I think 4 quality sales a year is a good idea.

I decided we needed to whittle down what we were taking to the sale in the way of booth display structures. And I decided we needed to lighten up. Plus we need to de-clutter the booth. So...

~ The signage on rug hooking is going to disappear. People were just asking me questions anyways.

~ I am changing the side of the booth I sit on to demonstrate rug hooking, so I can hide the clutter from it on the edge of the booth away from the customers.

~ I bought a wire shoe rack that snaps together to display the quilts - folded up.

~ I bought a wire waste basket to display the rolled up larger rugs, saving the display boards for smaller rugs.

~ I may not take the aprons. They just get in the way. We'll see. My partner thinks we should take them. So may we'll just take them and see.

~ I bought a plastic table skirt to go with a cloth tablecloth we are using with this sale. I can't find a cloth table skirt. To rent one for the weekend costs $25. I hate to imagine how much they cost to buy! And we need two. The plastic ones were $6.50 each. And $3.50 for the clips to hold them on the table.

[Libby]

"Moose & Mountains" can be yours for $400 plus shipping and handling! It's finished...all of it.

Attachment 23953

That moose is awesome!!

Ideas for your booth: table cloth, can you hot glue some small'ish rocks to help weigh them down until you sew something from fabric? Can you change the flow of your booth? Make it more of a U shape? Go in on the right side, follow the side all the way down to the back, across the back and follow the left side all the way back up to the front of the booth? Possibility of another display in the middle of the U? I hope that made sense.

I would agree, take the aprons with you. Any sale is better then no sale right? Maybe don't display all of them but have one or two out and should someone show interest, you can inform them that there are other styles available and show them as needed?

Sounds like you're getting yourself on track peanut - keep up the great work.

How are you drying your mint? I have an over abundance and am not sure what to do with it.

[peanut]

Thanks Libby.

I'm drying my mint in the microwave between two layers of paper towel. About 1 minute, maybe 2, for the leaves stripped from the stems.

I am spending this afternoon updating my rug hooking portfolio. That way I don't have to display all my rugs either. Just the good ones or the small ones. Found another largish rug I could part with if someone wanted to pay the money.

Accidentally managed to get waterproof pen ink from a Uniball pen on one of my quilts. The big one! ARGH! I have tried water (without and with soap), rubbing alcohol, and cigarette lighter fluid, all to no effect. Any ideas anyone? As is, the quilt has been pulled off the sale rack. It's a mark about 1/4" long, black on ivory.

[zakity]

Fingernail polish remover?

[FrabjousDay]

I keep a can of cheapo alcohol laden hairspray on hand for ink stains. It works bests if I catch the stain before it dries completely.

[peanut]

Thanks. I've tried everything but the hair spray. Don't want to ruin the quilt with that. And I certainly don't want to wash it before selling it. This stain is dry now. I did try Goo Gone and that got more of it off. Will work on it tomorrow again. Nail polish remover didn't work Zakity.

I put together the stuff I'm taking to the sale and it's nice and compact. Lightweight displays. I am liking the looks of this much better. Not so sure about rolling up the big rugs, but honestly, I'm not likely to sell one.

Remade the apron sign to fit in a clear lucite stand that sits on the table or the top shelf of the shoe rack. It all works for me. Don't know where we'll put the aprons yet, but this is a work in progress. We'll see.

Talked to my friend and we're not looking forward to the sale this weekend. It's too soon after the one last weekend. And it is a long drive, and a 3 day sale. Means long days. I think I better get set up to do some on my own next year. I only want to pick 3 or 4 for the year, so I want them to be good ones.

[shoiji]

Uniball - FAQs

May help with the ink stain.

[peanut]

So here's the set up for the weekend.

AFU booth 1.jpg

I think this looks much better. It was a weird shaped space they gave us. I don't think they realized what we were and what we had. The guy organizing it thought I made jeans and rugs! I had to tell him twice "my name is Jean and I hook rugs". Then people showed up thinking I hooked floor rugs. My rugs are all wall art. Mostly though, people just didn't know what they were. So I demonstrated, a lot. My friend sold a couple hats. We'll still go Saturday and Sunday, but I may end up owing on this one...

[peanut]

Well that sale was a bust. Didn't sell a single solitary thing. Did have lots of interest though. And an artist stopped by to chat. He said I was in the wrong venue and needed to join the Craft Council. That's the third or fourth person to mention that this last year. It's expensive though. $100 to join, and you have to be juried in, and then $100+ for a booth at their craft sales PLUS then you have to have a professional display. I don't know... I also have to have 10-15 pieces for them to jury. It's hard enough to get the pieces done in advance. Rug hooking takes a long time. And with selling them too...?

At any rate. I'm taking tomorrow off to regroup. Then I'll decide what direction to go the rest of the summer. I was going to wait till this fall to set up a website to sell my rugs, but I may do it sooner. I have to check my finances and the guy who offered to do it.