Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Fabric Shopping Again

These are some new fabrics that I picked up. The trees on the end is a flannel for fleece and flannel blankies and the rest are cottons for the Market Line bags and Hot/Cold Packs.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Flannel Collection & More Cottons

I've finally uploaded to my photobucket account images of all my stock flannel. You can find the link in my Places To Go, and below. I have enough flannel in each print to make one or more Polar Fleece and Flannel Throw Blankets. I still have lots more, where I have flannel stockings cut out and ready to make. Hopefully I'll get to those some time soon.

Here are the kitty stockings that I made....half finished. You can find these fabrics (except the "licensed" prints) in the Flannel album. I can't seem to find the photograph I took with the "cuffs" added.




I've also added a few more prints to the Cotton collection.

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Flannel & A New Item Idea, based on an old one

I was up quite late last night, trying to photograph every flannel print where I have more than two yards in stock. I'm now organizing them with fabric numbers, and I should have that photobucket album up in a day or so. I just love flannel, and every year I try to buy as much as I can afford at Joann's annual flannel sale the day after Thanksgiving. Last year, the price was $.99 a yard from 6:00 am to 12 noon, and I hit three different store locations scoring some great stuff.

I use flannel to make the Christmas Stockings and the Polar Fleece and Flannel Throw Blankets and Baby Blankets. I've made some hot/cold packs out of flannel by special request, but it's not the ideal fabric for them. After awhile, the flannel starts to feel almost gummy.

My entire fabric stash at this point is quite extensive, and probably rivals Kim's (The Darwin Exception) continually expanding yarn collection. Tomorrow, I just might crawl up in the attic to photograph the crates and crates and crates of cotton, panne, flannel, tapestry, upholstery and Asian silks, just to give you an idea of how much I have. I only have a small fraction of the different prints I have photographed.

My client this morning suggested that I offer a much smaller Christmas Stocking for people who want a stocking for their pet. I thought that was a great idea, and I might just stop what I'm currently working on tomorrow, sketch out a pattern and make a few samples. What do you think? If you have pets, do you include them in the celebration by hanging a stocking for them and buying them presents?

I will also try to have a price list up for everything I make, since several people have been making inquiries, and the only prices online at this time are for a few items on the web site.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Christmas Stockings

Last year, I gave everyone on my list a polar fleece & flannel Christmas stocking, using a flannel print of something that related to them, or something that they really loved. Kitty lovers got cat prints, dog lovers got doggies, children got a related children's print, sports lovers got their favorite sports, etc. Because of that massive flannel shopping last year, I now have more flannel than I can every use for the next several years. The attic is packed with flannel.

Below are the stockings that I made for the store, Gift Baskets, Etc., in Buffalo, Wyoming, where you can find my Western and Wilderness lines of Market Bags, blankets, table linens and sachets. I still have some of the flannel prints below in stock.



I know I took some pics of the kitty prints, but I can't seem to find it right now. I have a print where the stockings are half finished, (without the cuffs), and if I can't find the finished one, I just might put that one up anyway.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Baby Blanket Throws

What is the best way to photograph a blanket? It's still a puzzle to me because you want to capture size in relation to other objects, and show the features of both sides. Here is a Baby Throw made from white polar fleece and varying print flannel and chenille flannel squares. I put it on my massage table, which is six feet long and 31" wide. The size of the blanket is approximately 58" x 43."