Holiday Picks: Adorn it

I love the holidays. Love them. Full of festive colors, spicy scents, and the giving spirit! I get so giddy and spend-happy about spoiling those closest to me. :)

I've been away for a while on vacation, so I didn't have a chance to post my "Friday Picks". I wanted to make up for it by posting one today. But as I was looking for items to feature, I found A LOT more items I want to feature well before the shipping deadlines, so I'm going to dedicate each day until Christmas to Holiday Picks!

Today I'm just in love with holiday adornments. Whether it's adorning your gift packages, Christmas tree, fireplace mantel, cat, or apples, you can find so many great ways to add some holiday love to your home/pets/food. ;)

a. Felted Acorn Christmas Gift Tags, Fairyfolk
b. Ceramic Christmas Ornament, SayYourPiece
c. Mulberry Spice Scented Candle, JenSanCandles
d. Christmas Tartan Pet Neck Tie, WhiskerKisses
e. Metallic Red Apple Jacket, Handamade

Traveler Upgrade!

New Traveler in the shop, with a new upgrade. Hope you likes! :)

Feature-ama Tuesday

Yesterday was a really big press day for me! Thought I'd share the love with ya. :)

1.
It started with my Briefcase in Sage Distressed Leather on the Front Page of Etsy.

2.
Then I received an e-mail from one of my TEAMT teammates about my feature in Decor8!

3.
As I was looking at my traffic sources on Google Analytics, I saw that my Briefcase in Russet Brown was featured in a photography tip talk on PoppyTalk.

4.
Then I received an e-mail just an hour ago about my Clutch in Eggplant in YMI Jeans blog.

Thanks Etsy Admin, Holly of Decor8, Becka of PoppyTalk, and Leslie of YMI Jeans for all the love! I appreciate it!! :)

Guys Like Girls With Little-to-No Makeup

I always considered myself light on the makeup --brown eye shadow, mascara, and some blush.

No concealers or foundations yet.

Well, when I go out, I tend to darken the eyes a bit with the smokey look of a little bit of dark brown and black mixed together and it makes me feel all pretty and girly --because really, I spend my days inside sewing and in front of the computer, and I dress like a bum 5/7ths of the week, so this is my 1-2 days to prettiness.

Yesterday, I decided to celebrate my 300th Etsy Sale by taking The Boy out to a late lunch. I never get to pay for our meals together, so I forced him to go to a restaurant he didn't feel like going to and then offered to pay! Hah! I'm good. ;)

We went to First Chinese BBQ because I'm a huge sucker for their Vegetable Lo Mein and Roast Peking Duck. That and Popeyes chicken are my weaknesses. So healthy, right?

I didn't put on any makeup out of sheer laziness, though there was some still left on my face from the night before when I fell asleep with make up on. Bad. I know. And I didn't shower either because I showered the night before. Double bad.

Then when I arrive at The Boy's apartment to go, he says, "Whoa, your makeup looks really good today!"and I said,"Thanks! But I'm not wearing any...".

Then after we eat, we go to a nearby boba tea place and order my favorite Almond Milk Tea with Pearls and the lady at the cashier says,"This might come off as weird, but I really love your complexion!".

I wasn't going to tell her that I didn't wash my face and I fell asleep with make up on, and I wasn't even showered before going out for a celebratory lunch, but thanks anyway!

I smile, thank her, and grab my boba and we leave. Then I started to wonder why all of a sudden I'm getting two compliments on my face in one day...

I started to think about my genes.

My parents have really nice skin. I think I got my skin from my Dad. He was acne-free throughout his youth and even at his age, he looks like he's got baby-smooth skin! My mom looks really young for her age, too. God, I hope my parents don't kill me when they read that I'm talking about their age. I won't reveal their age, but they definitely look at least 20 years younger than they actually are. And that is definitely due to their eating habits --they eat a little to no-fat diet, and they also workout every day at the gym. Like not going to the gym and lollygagging on the elliptical while watching a movie in the Cardio Theater like I do. They do 45 minutes of heavy-sweating cardio followed by lots of weight-lifting. They're machines I tell you. Machines. My brother and I come to visit and my parents get dressed to gym-it after dinner and as the bro and I lazily decline the offer and instead mosey over to the couch to watch TV, my parents head to the gym without us and do their routine. I admire them a lot for their determination. :)

Here's a picture of the four of us from New Years 2007 at our house. I don't think we've taken another family picture since then. I will make sure we do this year!

Bro, Mom, Me, Dad

But really, I would like to attribute my complextion to my face wash, because my mom noticed a significant improvement in my complexion after I started using this new face wash. And after I started using it, I received compliments from The Boy's Mom, and some other random people. It was so weird, and it was just until yesterday that I thought long and hard about why I'm getting such interesting attention...

And if you would like to know the secret, I use Mary Kay Timewise 3-in-1 cleanser...every other day or so. Definitely on workout days. Not so much on everyday days.

But as for The Boy's compliment. I've heard this first-hand from many; guys like girls to wear little to no make up.

I've heard it before. Men don't like their women to appear fake. And apparently they can tell when it's caked-on. Ah-hah moment: They aren't as oblivious as we may think.

Oh, I asked The Boy about his opinion on my "Smokey Eyes" that I love so much when we go out and he said he hates them. HATES them. He said Hate. He says too much makeup looks clowny. Good to know. Thanks for telling me 9 months ago when we started dating. YeahOkayThanksBye.

It's Man-Friendly, Too!

Get your bag, now!

TEAMT Weekend Sale!

Pssssttt! TeamT is having a team-wide SALE this weekend only! These make great gifts!

Save 10% off my entire Jenny N. Design shop including my Eightfold line! I can combine shipping across both stores. Indicate in "Message to Seller" upon purchase and the shipping overages will be refunded via PayPal ASAP. Shipping not included in savings. Savings will be refunded via PayPal.

Hers & His

...or just all Hers.

Although you have to admit that this looks really cute, huh? :)

Baby Ruche in Red & Briefcase in Russet

The NEW Briefcases that I just finished today with some NEW leather will be posted later tonight. In the meantime, please vote in this poll about men wearing The Briefcase.

Online Surveys & Market Research

Shop787, My First Vendor Fair

This was my first time being a vendor at a big event. Despite the non-stop rain --which forced all the vendors to move from the big beautiful courtyards, into the few vacant apartments of the first floor, it was a success (financially and for exposure).

I'm just starting to get my brand out to Austin, which is good. I haven't been very involved in the Austin community although it has a large handmade following --from my map of sales, most of my bags ship to the east/west coasts of the US.

I plan to attend two more events in December (5th and 8th, eek they are close!), and I hope that I will get more exposure to the city I love. :) :)

While I was at Shop787, however, I learned many lessons:

1. Know your audience.

I assumed that my smaller bags like Hip Pockets, Travelers, and Clutches would sell the best. They are the least expensive items in my shop. But boy was I wrong. The big leather items were the popular ones. The unfortunate thing was that I didn't focus a lot of my preparation towards this, otherwise I would have focused on just Baby Ruche leather bags and Briefcases in leather. Those would have been a better hit at this particular event.

2. Make your presence known.

I had a white table linens, white shelves, white mannequin, and lots of white white white. I planned this so that my BOLD and COLORFUL bags would stand out. They did, but not compared to all the vendors that were surrounding me with their tall racks and big stands. I was also a bit gypped on my space --I purchased a 4'x8' space and because we all had to move inside, everyone was being a bit liberal with their displays and spreading out a little more. I was shoved in a little corner of the "dining room" and though I had enough space for my products, my neighbor took up about 7'x8' of space and I was shadowed out. It wasn't his fault, the vendor next to him had a table next to his booth and when they removed their table, he had more space to fill with customers. I think I saw more backs to my booth than people actually interested. Next time I'll come back with big shelves, big banners, and loud music. Just kidding. But I will attempt to make myself stand out more.

3. Make your space more inviting.

I was excited to share all my products in person because for the first time, everyone could touch, see, and smell my products in person. They feel wonderful! Really. Some of the leathers are super soft, some are squishy, some are pebbly, and some are smooth. My corduroy bags are really great to touch, too! I'm not sure if my space was too "clean" looking that it made it uncomfortable to touch, pick up, and try on, but I felt like customers only tried things on because I told them to pick it up and try it on for size! C'mon people. It's there for you to touch! I'll post a sign that says "Touch me!" next time. ;)

My booth, after I moved my mannequin on top of the shelf and to the center where it made my booth look more noticable. And some of the big leather items sold so I pulled out the Eightfold bags and placed them on the guitar stand which originally held the leather Briefcase.

p.s. I really liked having a teammate there (The Boy). Although I never left my booth to pee, The Boy did bring me food and drinks. Thank goodness. Because I would have passed out otherwise!

It was also a BIG plus that my friends (mostly guys) came to visit me to show their support. The event didn't cater AT ALL to men, so they ended up just getting lots of drinks at the bar. Hah! Thanks guys! I hope you had fun! :)

For Him

The holidays are just around the corner and we've gotta start thinking about him. What do you get for the man in your life? Here are some of my favorites!

a. Men's White Long Sleeve Button-down Shirt w/ Epaulets, NonnieThreads
b. Guitar Lessons, SlowShirts
c. Nomad Black and Brown Leather Cuff, BatwingsBattleaxes
d. Transformer Screenprinted Necktie, Toybreaker
e. Mustache Pint Glasses, BreadandBadger

My Sweet Tooth Gets Me in Trouble...Again.

I have a really big sweet tooth.

And it doesn't help that Etsy sellers like VintageConfections list all their sweets on SALE! Happy 1 Year Anniversary, Heather. :)

So this is what I ordered today. French Sea Salt Caramels and Coffee Toffee.

And I didn't feel the slightest bit guilty about it because I ran a 5K some days ago and I'm still extremely sore. Like, excruciatingly sore all over my legs. It hurts to walk up stairs, and even more so downstairs. It hurts to press the foot pedal to sew. It hurts to sit down to pee. Oh...TMI, sorry.

Look at these treats!!

Shop787, You're Invited!

This Sunday, November 8, in Austin.

Come see, feel, and smell (yes, I'll allow it) my bags at Shop787 at Mosaic at Mueller!

For $5 a ticket ($10 at the door), you'll get access to:

• 50+ Austin designers, artists, and boutiques (I'm one of 'em!)
• FREE Open Bar
  
• Food court by Austin restaurants
  
• Live music!
  

It's family-friendly, too! Tell your friends, family, and co-workers! :)

Get your tickets now for $5 using this link and you'll be entered to win a $150 gift certificate! Remember to print out the receipt to show at the door!

Can't wait to see your lovely face!

Halloween 2009

Halloween was a success! Here's what I made for The Boy and me. :)

Click to see more details on Flickr

Now for the summary of work.

Note: I didn't use any templates to make these. I can't follow written directions to save my life. The last time I tried to make something from a template, it was a huge disaster, and I couldn't understand all the technical terms. It's just WAY easier for me to sketch out the final result and reverse engineer all the dimensions and design specifications.

I made my costume from suede-looking polyester fabric that already had the cut out and fringe at the bottom, I added the fringe at the top of the dress, and finished it with a zippered back. My accessories are made from leather scraps from my shop. I cut lots of "feathers" from some of my leathers and punched holes into the top and finished it them with brushed nickel eyelets. Tied them together with jute twine and attached them to the braided leather. You can't see the details of my headdress very well, but I did a similar "feather" design for the headdress as the arm band (sans the metal concho).

That night, I was also sporting one of my bags from my other shop, Eightfold, to carry my cell, cash, and ID for our trip downtown for costume viewing. :)

The Boy's costume consists of "leather" chaps made from car vinyl. I just took a pair of his pants to get the length and width that I needed to cover about half of his leg. The fringe on the side of the chaps is made from vintage metal conchos and leather scraps from my shop. I made his gun holsters from leather scraps and lots of rivets. The chaps and gun holsters are attached to his belt, which is adorned with a Texas-sized buckle (which I will now be wearing ALL THE TIME). :)

His top is a thrift store find, the hat is mine (with a leather band that I cut and stapled onto it to make it more manly looking), and his white tank is one of his undershirts that I stole from his closet, cut holes into, and stained with old coffee grinds for a dirty cowboy look. *wink!*

His accessories are also from Eightfold, in brown leather. His bracelet was the first I made and he loved it so much, he suggested I started selling them.

We received lots of compliments, so all-in-all, it was a great success! :)

I wonder what we'll be next year...