A Beautiful Disaster!

A few months ago I got a call from a lady I've known for most of my life. Her daughter is a few years older than me and has 3 little ones, 2 girls and a boy. In fact, when her daughter was pregnant with her first, I was pregnant with Pyper, we were due the same week!

Grandma was ordering two hats to accessorize the two black faux fur coats she made for the girls. She had ideas for style and a specific color in mind. Grandma came over and we looked at a few patterns that I'd pre-selected based on our discussion, and sure enough there was one there that she loved. The color palate was white with a black band and soft pink flowers with black leaves, simple but striking. Here's where the distaster begins!!!!!

The brand of cotton I usually use doesn't have a soft pink... seriously, hot pink, dusty rose, peachy pink....no soft pink. I whipped out the laptop and we looked at the color options from the brands that I could order in. We decided on a tone and I placed the order as soon as she left, and then I waited....

And waited...

And waited...

I received an email from the supplier indicting that they were undergoing a change in their postal delivery service and that although it would speed things in the future it would cause a delay on this order. I phoned Grandma and let her know.

And waited...

And waited...

And waited...

I sent the supplier an email... a rather unhappy email indicating that they usually have a slower than average in the delivery time and that I understood that they were undergoing a change but this was CRAZY!!! I am running a business and their wait time is reflecting badly on me and my business ....where's my stuff?? I soon found out that they sent the package to my old address...despite the fact that I've ordered since the move. Of course the new owner rejected the parcel and it was sent back to the supplier. It was that close...about 6 blocks away from home! They said once the package was received back they'd re-ship to the correct address... ugh......

I phoned Grandma and let her know where things were at...and waited...

And waited...

And waited...

It took aproximately 2 months for the yarn to show up...... holy poopers... I was soooooooo irritated... I finished the embellishments for the hats that night... and delivered ASAP. Despite my many phonecalls throughout updating Grandma, she though these hats just were not going to happen. I take pride in beating the deadlines I give people... so needless to say I was mortified... and of course did my best to "make it right".

I had Pyper model one of the hats...so here you go, you can see my beautiful disaster!

What have I learned?? ....uh....find a new supplier... triple check to make sure the shipping address is correct... stock more colors so I don't have to order to fill an order!!!

I heart... returning customers & custom orders

I had to share this cute little hat with you!

I got an email a couple weeks back from a local photographer (so local she's actually on my way to work!!!), she's got one of my hats already. So this time she was looking for another hat, and a diaper cover. She sent a picture of a had she'd seen and was hoping for something similar, but with a flower in a soft tone.

Once I poured over the picture for a while I figured it was made using 2 yarns held together. Something for a base, maybe with a little texture and a novelty yarn for some fuzz. I'll have to be honest, I usually stear very clear of the novelty yarn, it's just not my genre, however, on this one I'm glad I picked it up. I think the result came out really cute!

It was funny thought, i crocheted the whole thing and realized that the inside was VERY furry.... I uh........... had to give it a haircut :)

Hope you like! :)

hoppity hop.... star struck bunny!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The baby bunny hat has became a favorite to many before it hit the market, thanks to this beautiful picture that Carol posted on her blog!! ...then with this week's Prop Insanity review ...so many people are asking...where's that bunny??

well...here it is... freshly posted to paperraisins.ca

The specs - 100% Acrylic (super-soft), ears lined with a cotton/polyester blend, trimmed with bows. Currently available in newborn size only... perfect as a photography prop, or as a gift to a new mommy!!! The baby bunny retails for $26.00. Available in tan (shown) or mottled tones. This bunny's star struck with the following fabric options, please let me know which one you choose at the time of ordering.... yellow, teal, blue or green

Hope you love the baby bunny as much as I do!!!

love....hate...

Do I start with the LOVE... or the HATE??

I'll start with the hate and get that over with!! ...I hate having to tell a client that something is out of stock! ...sometimes I get fantastic yarns, clean out the store of it and then can't get it in again... once i've used it up, it's gone... that makes me sad... and I hate having to tell someone they can't have what they really want... okay, so I guess there might be one positive thing though, for the people who do get those products... they are getting something unique!

now that i've vented... let's talk about the LOVE.... or rather i'll talk... :)

I love when clients LOVE their stuff... I love when they're so excited to get their items that they can't wait until I've left to open them up... or so excited that they ask me to ship overnight so they can see it right away... which has happened 3 times this weekend!!! ...makes me very happy!!! :)

I really enjoy being able to provide a client with a product that exceeds their expectation... A loves hats but has a challenging head size.......... uh......... she has to shop in the kids department for hats!! ...so finding a "grown-up" style...not to mention finding something that looks "grown-up" AND stylish in the retail market... seems to be too much to ask! ...i've now made 4 hats for A...and she's just requested a 5th... for her it's great because she's getting what she wants and not comprimising on fit.... for me, it's fun... she loves her stuff enough to keep coming back for more...could there be a bigger compliment than that?

I took A out for some pictures on a lunch break (from the "day" job).... still trying to get the hang of taking pictures...and I ended up with a few that i'm quite proud of... yay!! We had a great agreement...she'd be patient with me because i'm no photographer...and i'd be patient with her because she's no model... :) iIve included a few of the pics from that day thoughout today's post...

Well...i'm off... that was more long winded than I anticipated... as you can imagine I talk a lot in person too!!! ...i've got lots of stuff to make for next week's newborn product shoot... i'm super excited about that!! ..i'll keep you posted!

...humph...

...here's a shot that didn't make paperraisins.ca... it's a variation of the shot that I added to the "for mom" section. I posted this one...briefly, but decided to swap it out for one that looks more fresh and fun... since this one wasn't in keeping with my theme.... uh, thanks for pointing that out Aunt Les.... :P

I wanted to share it anyway because I really like how it came out... just not for my website...

Okay...i'm done pouting now :)

the schoolbus driver...

Here's a variation on a new syle...thought I'd try it with buttons and a band, and I'm LOVING how it came out! It was so much fun...I got this box of crafting odds and ends from a friend and was so excited to sift through literally hundreds of buttons.... now I'm trying to come up with anything that I can do with buttons!!! ...It's great becasue of the one-of type work that I enjoy doing, the trimmings can vary, depending on what I can find in this box of many buttons!!! The sizing options so far are 18", 20", 22".

Pype enjoyed her first trip on a transit bus to the public library. I'm ashamed to say that it's taken me 3 1/2 years to take her there, usually I just pick up my reads on lunch from work. She was in awe when she realized that the building we were standing across from was the library, and even more awed when she saw how many books were there, I believe it was a slow, deliberate, "hooooolllyyyyyy cow!" that came out!

On the bus is where I got this shot...and I promise I will have this added to the gallery on my website this weekend!!! ....there will be lots of color options upon request!

new hats!!!!

Hooray for new yarn and new hats!!! ...i'm still working on the size ranges for these ones, but should have them up on the website shortly!!

I've had this pattern for a newsboy style cap for a while now and just hadn't done anything with it... found this great soy/wool blend and thought i'd give it a shot. Of course I found things that I wanted to adjust... so I'm still working on improving the pattern...

The first one is a cotton newsboy, super-cute and i'll have several colors to choose from once I get my act together!

The second is the wool/soy newsboy...which I plan to adjust (from what you see in the picture) ...I plan to line it with jersey fabric and make a double-layered brim for more structure... but I loved doing the flower pattern, they're all shell-type buttons and jewelery beads...

Unfortunately, the pic turned out WAY too dark... but you get the idea on the hat anyway!!

and the winner was....

Tasha from Life's Little Treasures Photography (http://lifeslittletreasuresphotography.blogspot.com/) ...but what did she win?? Carol (http://www.frecklefacephotography.com/) hosted a contest a few months back and Tasha won a Paper Raisins gift certificate!!!

Tasha shot me an email and just wasn't sure what exactly she wanted, she liked one of the hats I'd done recently but wanted something a little more neutral...so after a few emails back and forth and a couple trips to the yarn shop we had a winner...

I put together this brown and ivory tassled hat... complete with a couple detachable purple flowers for a little punch! ...oh, and I couldn't resist making a scarf to match...so I threw that in too... sometimes I just can't stop... must keep crocheting... :)

I was excited when I received this pic of her little girl in the set... It makes me so happy to get feedback, especially to find out that I've nailed it, and made exactly what they didn't know they were looking for!

Tomorrow I'm heading out to take some pics of Pype, in the new hat I whipped up for her... hopefully they turn out!!!

Boys...boys...boys

There is a serious lack of crochet patterns for boys, but I bet I didn't have to tell you that! I loved the scarf with tassles that Pyper made (with a little help) so much that I decided to make a boy hat & scarf set based on it!

I bought a couple balls of this great multi-colored yarn with dark green, grey and taupe - I bought it for something else entirely but though it would lend itself perfectly to this project. It's SUPER soft!

Since I have only a small amount of this yarn I can only offer two of this set, first come, first served! ...The hat fits a size 18-20" - it's nice and plyable.. the scarf has the loop to keep it in place around the neck. They are very easy to care for, machine wash in warm water and dry on low heat - but I do strongly, strongly recommend washing and drying in a laundry bag to prevent any snags from other clothing. The cost for the 2-piece set is $45.00.

Stay tuned for those awesome slippers I mentioned in the Pyper post... they will be making an appearance soon!

mmmmmmmmm........ butter........

oops... I`ve been seriously delinquent in the posting department... our move proved to be more unsettling than I had expected, but I`m here, catching up on orders and trying out some new stuff!! ...I love new stuff!!!


I was in touch with my chenille supplier and placed a BIG order...yay!!! ...yarn... I`m trying to get some of the popular colors that I`m running (or have run) out of and of course a few new ones to add. It`s funny when you`re in the realm of ordering yarn by the pound, rather than by the ball... I asked her how much i can fit in one box... and she said not more than 50 pounds.... 50 pounds... holy cow... that`s like 1 1/2 Pypers ...of yarn...


Carol (freckleface photography) was in touch with me a couple weeks ago and sent me an image to see what I could do with it... as a result I made a newborn ``pod`` ...I LOVE it and hope it works for her! It`s out of this great dill colored bamboo yarn...melty soft!!! I love these opportunities, getting to step outside of the ``box`` and create a pattern from scratch, especially the photography props, since they`re not my norm... hopefully I`ll have a great shot of it soon to post!



Just finished a hat order... (above) a chenille berry hat, they`re so adorable...I really like making them, and they are so cute on... the shade I used was one I forgot I had (the larger ``the stash`` gets the more amnesia about what`s in it) :) ...anyway, it`s butter.... soft, smooth, cuddly... butter... I hope the intended recipient loves it... `cause I sure do!!!


I hope to have the berry hats added to the website soon, a few people know I do them and have requested them specifically even though they`re not yet listed. I`m also planning to add newborn boxed gift-sets...like the one I did in the Cotton Candy pink (post below) I figure one for girls, one for boys and one neutral... so easy for gift giving, it`s all there for you, all you have to do is wrap!!!



Oh, I almost forgot.... I`m offering Gift Certificates now!!! ...sometimes it`s hard to make choices for someone else so now you can let them do the deciding... They`re available in denominations of your choice, $15 minimum.

Images

I had a lunch meeting with Carol (freckleface photography) yesterday and we exchanged goods! I am now in posession of stunning images with which to reconfigure my website, I can hardly wait. Here's a sneak peek at a few images...

Of course, my girl...
Are his eyes not stunning??!!

I really hope that Carol is as happy with her handmade props as I am with her photographs. I'm still in the process of finishing up the last hat, I made one each for her three girls. The last of those is in the works and I picked up some fantastic ribbon and a clip to use on it, since I'm told she's not a frilly girl it's more tailored. I really hope the girls like their hats once i'm done...

I can't wait to get the ball rolling on the new website!

PS - an extra special thanks out to my fantastic "models"...they did so well and are absolutely gorgeous kids!!!!

Kayla

Well, a trip to the emergency room on Friday afforded me the time necessary to finish up this hat for Kayla. She's the unborn child of one of my daughter's daycare workers. I'd save the hat until after she's born but her mom isn't returning to work after, so no better time than the present.

I made this Cloche Style hat from acrylic chenille and sized it to fit her at about 3-6 months, so she should be good-to-go for the fall/winter, provding her head circumference co-operates!!! I had been saving this fantastic plum chenille for something special. I broke it out for Carol (frecklefacephotography.ca) to make a newborn hat and decided that it would be lovely for Kayla too! I have such a small amount of it that i'm really trying to save it for special projects!

Hope the hat is a hit!!! :) ...and i hope that somewhere down the line i get to see a picture of Kayla in it!

Esther

Just in the nick of time I finished the hat and scarf set for Esther. After painting my upstairs hallway's second coat I hit the hook hard... up late putting on the finishing touches, and none too soon either. The retirement party for is this morning and I just got it wrapped and boxed, whew!

I think it's her, it should be a big hit! ...in fact now that it's done I want a set for myself...

Congratulations on your retirement Esther... you deserve the break!!!