Choices, choices, choices September 29, 2010

As Alex said in our last post, teh Bothered Owl will be at Fibre Flurry in all our feathery glory. Well, in Alex and Scott’s feathery glory anyway. I am rather sad that I can’t make it but travelling to out of town shows with two small owlettes and a bump in tow is not really something I’m planning on attempting this year.

But I am still ENORMOUSLY excited about it for two reasons.

1. It’s our first show outside of London.

2. It’s a brand new event and we get to be exhibitors at the very first one EVER. Awesome sauce.

So I thought I’d show you a little bit of what we’ll have on offer for those of you attending, in terms of the kinds of fabrics were using for the bags this time around. Each show is slightly different and we try to have a wide range of fabric available for ogling.

Here’s some of what I have cut up at the moment and some of what’s waiting in the cupboard of doom.

Gorgeous Alexander Henry print from the Willow Grove range. I love it.

Mushrooms/toadstools.

Alex likes to call these ‘Japanese PEZ dispensers’

Froggggggies

I am a sucker for the sugar skulls. These guys are enormous versions of the little ones we had at Knit Nation & IKnit.

Is it wrong that I have so many owl fabrics? They’re all gorgeous!

General cuteness waiting to be chopped up into treats.

I just want to cuddle these little fellows.

These skull and cross bones make me think of Hello Kitty.

Sock Yarn Pouch: 7″ wide by 9″ high by 3″ deep

Large Yarn Pouch: 7.5 – 8″ wide, 11″ high, 3″ deep

Giant Yarn Pouch: 9″ wide by 14″ high by 3.5″ deep

As always, this is just a taster. I have a veritable cornucopia of fabric hiding away in my cabinet and I almost certainly have something in there that would suit you. Yes, you, over there.

We’ve been re-jigging our yarn pouches since IKnit and Knit Nation, always l0oking to improve and make them that wee bit more useful. So we now have three sizes for your delectation: Sock,  Large and Giant.  Not the most imaginative of names – something we’ll rectify at some point- but it does what it says on the etcetera.

Have some examples, with vital statistics!

Sock Yarn Pouch: 7" wide by 9" high by 3" deep

Large Yarn Pouch: 7.5 - 8" wide, 11" high, 3" deep

Giant Yarn Pouch: 9" wide by 14" high by 3.5" deep

Incidentally, in the interests of honesty and giving praise where it is due, the above Giant yarn pouch is not my work, but Alex’s. I am really proud of her, she came over the other day and she got stuck in. I only had to help her out twice and she did everything else by herself, from memory. I reckon by the time she heads back to Aus, we’ll have her whipping up fancy creations in the blink of an eye.

We’ve got about 4 weeks left to finish up our preparations, so now’s the time to let me know if there is something particular you want us to have on the stall. I am very happy to do custom orders (just have a flick through some of our recent posts and you will see I can’t shut up about them!) and pre-orders are very welcome.

We’ll also have our usual array of needle storage options, from envelopes/needle snugs through to needle rolls and I can usually tweak my designs to accommodate your needs. (Any kinky comments will be ignored.) E.g. if you don’t use DPNs, I’ll leave out the DPN pocket. If you want a needle roll specifically for straight needles etc, that can be done.

Right. Enough blathering from me. I am off to relax for an hour or so before bed, I might even get a few rows of knitting on my new winter hat done, who knows! Tomorrow, I sew like a mad thing. I promise, Alex, I will…

Sarah

Ch ch ch ch ch changes September 21, 2010

(Okay, okay, it’s a cheesy title. But appropriate.)

We had a very productive sit down this evening in the Alex and Scott part of Owl HQ. It’s something we’ve been meaning to do for a while, there’ s so much stuff to cover when you’re running your own business for the first time and we’ve been a bit hit and miss in terms of doing some of the stuff they recommend, like writing a proper business plan! We’ve discussed what we want from the business and we know how we want to achieve it, we just haven’t taken the time to sit down and write it all down.

And my goodness there was a lot to cover.

Over the next twelve months you will be seeing a lot of changes around here. We have so many plans for ways we can make the business stronger and better and we have an impending arrival and an impending departure.

Yes, a departure.

I can reveal that Alex and Scott are planning to leave these … ahem…  sunny isles to return to the lands from whence the three of us came. Probably towards the end of next year. Job prospects and a general desire to spend time with parents and begin to settle down and really build a stable life are the key factors in their decision. And after a while, you get homesick for the place you come from and it’s just time to head home.

But do not fear, one of the reasons we had our chat this evening is so that we can begin to put in place the structures we need to be able to carry on the Bothered Owl, even when the three of us are torn asunder! Being web-based is a huge advantage under these circumstances. Most of what we do now, we’ll continue to do, it’s just that a large proportion of our stuff will be based in Australia rather than the UK.

And of course, come March/APril time there will be a shiny new owlette to share with you all. It was good this evening to be able to start to make plans for how we work around the impending sprog, as I’d be heartbroken to have to walk away from what we’ve built. We’ve really slogged our guts out and put heart and soul into what we’ve started and I am so pleased to be able to say I will get to continue to be a part of it.

I will be more behind the scenes in the future, probably taking more responsibility for this blog again and so forth. Taking photos at shows, doing interviews and so on, so that even if I’m not stood behind the stall for the whole day, I can still be a part of things. And I’ll hopefully be able to keep sewing, at least on a Saturday or something. It will be hard but we’ll find ways around it all. I’ll miss being on the stall but there will be new challenges and a whole new side of the business to open up.

There are so many other things to tell you about but suffice to say a lot of the time this evening was spent discussing stock for upcoming markets (I’m looking at you, Fibre Flurry!) including the holly wreathed behemoth that is Christmas. Working out things like advertising, whether we want to start checking out some of the bigger markets around SE London with an eye to exhibiting on a more regular basis, looking at potential venues for our stuff in the UK but also in the US and Australia. We want to get our wares out there and show more people what we can do.

I’m losing track of all the plans and suggestions that were flying around, so it’s lucky that our wonder stenographer, Scott, was on hand with his trusty laptop, typing things up as we went. We’ve all got homework and hopefully some exciting stuff will come out of this evening.

Over the next couple of weeks this is going to be quite an interactive space as we’re working on a customer survey/feedback thingamajig which we’d love loads of you to participate in. There will also be at least one competition coming up and a bunch of info on upcoming events.

Aaaand that’s about it. Watch this space, it’s going to be a bumpy but really exciting ride over the next twelve to eighteen months and we really hope you’ll cling on tight!

Puuuuuuush! July 19, 2010

I kind of feel like we’re in the third stages of a very protracted labour! We’ve been working towards Knit Nation for so long now and it’s next week and I’ve got 70 bits and pieces that I absolutely HAVE to get finished before then… It’s like we’ve been pushing for 36 hours now and the head’s stuck! I just want it OVER so we can metaphorically lie back and hopefully bask in the glow.

This week I have to finish: 23 foldout envelopes, 21 wide width envelopes, 15 tall yarn pouches and 11 needle rolls. If I get that done, I have 15 bucket bags to make and a bunch of zippered project purses to stitch. And a custom hat order to finish as well.

6 months ago the thought of having 70 items to make and only 9 days left to finish them would have sent me running screaming for the hills. Today, I’m looking at those heaps of fabric and taking a deep breath ready for that final push. I can totally do this!

Sarah

Juggling July 8, 2010

This has been written about before (and in a more cherent fashion) by others, but I want to address it because sometimes it feels like the elephant in the room. Or, you know, the owl in the room. Whatever.

I have two of these:

You’ve probably noticed, by now. They are fairly obtrusive around here, often sporting jaunty hats or bibs and being very patient with my many foibles.

I also have massive piles of these:

and these:and of course a massive basket like this:

All of it fighting for my attention, all of it needing me Right Now.

The parenting thing is a hard gig. I love it. I gave up teaching to be a Mum and I hope I’m getting to be okay at it. I try really hard to be involved with my kids, to listen to them and give them what they need – not always what they want, which is a different thing.  They’re turning out to be interesting little human beings and they are lots of fun to be around. Challenging, because they love to push my buttons and they are both at ‘difficult’ ages – although I think that all ages have their challenges.

The sewing thing is new for me. Not the actual sewing part, that I’ve been doing since I was a little kid and my Mum made me a patchwork quilt. I’ve been hooked on sewing ever since.

The thing that’s new for me is that it’s time when I re-direct some of my focus away from the kids and onto something else. Going off to markets with them, going over to Alex’s house without them. Small things but for me, really challenging because I.Am.Always.With.My.Kids. When Orlaith started preschool it took me months to adjust to that separation. It felt like part of my body was missing. I still feel weird about it and don’t get me started on the fact that she’s starting at primary school in January. (No, really, don’t. We’ll be here all day discussing the merits of formal education vs homeschooling. You don’t want to go there.)

Sewing for me is kind of about reclaiming an identity for myself that is separate from that of the children. What my Mum calls ‘individuation’.  Something I do that is not just about them.

But at the same time, I have two tiny people who want my attention. All The Time. They need stimulation, supervision, conversation and basic bits and pieces like feeding and taking to the loo. I don’t have the freedom of just walking into a studio, shutting the door behind me and getting to it, because sometimes if I so much as get off the sofa at the wrong time, this is what happens:

Less so these days as Esme gets older but even poor old Orlaith has those rough days when all she wants is to snuggle up on the sofa or in her bed with me and read books and snuggle.

All of which ends up in a hideous spiral of guilt.

Do I take the time to sit at the machine or do I play another game of trains or read another story? At the moment I don’t have a lot of  choice, as we crank up the preparations for Knit Nation to Full Scale Panic Mode. It’s the machine most of the time.

(The blog has been all but abandoned Do I take an hour to write a post about sewing or do I use that hour to make a bunch of stuff?)

And up until this week, I am ashamed to admit that quite often Mr Television has been getting a bit of a work out. Not that it actually guarrantees a quite moment but it gives the illusion of one.

But as of this week I am roud to say I’ve found a new solution: the craft aisle at the Local Giant Supermarket Chain of Doom. It yielded treasure beyond measure, in the form of paper plates, plasticine and trays of water colour paints.

What a revelation! Normally when we do painting it’s a major operation involving a hose and a bathtub and full supervision so that the paint doesn’t end up on the carpet or the walls. But with the tiny paint boxs, they are quite happy to sit each day, dipping their paint brushes in the water, dabbing gently at the little disks of paint and making lovely swirly shapes on the paper or the paper plates. And sometimes on themselves:The plasticine has been a massive success too. Hours of contemplative squishing and smushing.Not making anything in particular, you understand. Just enjoying trailing it about, smashing it a bit, festooning things with it. Then at the end, happily rolling every piece into one ginormous ball.

So, thank you, Giant Supermarket of Doom, you have relieved a little of my crafty parent guilt and made it slightly easier for me to carry on with my insane sewing death-march.

With all that said, the entire time I was writing this post, this is what’s been happening:

And you know what? I love it!

And now, back to the juggling…

Sarah

I love my job June 14, 2010

Seriously. What other job can you think of where I’d get to spend all day surrounded by fabric, chatting and mucking about with one of my best friends,  playing with my kids and making stuff that will hopefully make people very happy? All the while listening to trashy 80s and 90s hard rock, punk, ska, indie…

Yes, we have a lot of work to do but holy cats, are we ever having fun!

And at some point you may actually get a proper blog entry from one of us. One of these days when we manage to cross the slopes of Mount Knit Nation and safely abseil down the other side. Of course, if you don’t hear from us in the next few months, send a husky, we’re probably buried under a fabr-avalanche in my back room, being slowly mummified.

Now, I must return to my sewing. Sewing and Billy Idol. Sigh.

Sarah

Sneaky Peek Part 2: They Came With Cameras June 8, 2010

I did promise I would try to get some photos of the pieces we took into IKnit and despite massive technofailogicality (hee hee, neologism!) here they are. Click on each photo for an explanation of what each one is.

Needle Rolls

Sock needle envelopes

Knitting needle nevelopes

Shiny shiny envelope

But wait… there’s more!

We delivered 10 of each of these designs to IKnit, along with 10 of each size of yarn pouch, tall and small, in a huge variety of fabrics. There are a few matching items mixed in there but on the whole we tried to give a fairly wide range.

And I’ve just listed one new fold out envelope on Folksy as a trial. Check it out and see what you think. Once I get my computer woes sorted out I’ll try and pop a few more bits and pieces up there, but at the moment it’s a wee mite tricky to get at all the photos I’ve taken, since one computer is dead and the other has a non-functional SD card slot. Bloody technology!

And now, to bed.

Sarah

Busy little bees June 4, 2010

We’ve been a bit slow on the blogging front of late, sorry about that. Something to do with massive amounts of work…

Exciting stuff happening this week.  Alex popped into the Science Museum at the start of the week to drop off their second order and check on their stock levels. Stuff seems to be selling well – confirmed by the fact we just got a third order today!

And today I finished off the last items for my first ever wholesale knitting bag order! I am thrilled to bits about it and we’ll be dropping it off on Monday.

Tomorrow is Brockley Max, we’ll be up in the lovely park at Hilly Fields, roasting in the sun and having a great time. Lots of music, food, art, what more could you want?

Then Sunday, we’re off to the Horniman Museum for Forest Hill Day, another day jampacked with lots of good stuff.

Always glad to be doing stuff on our own patch, it’s nice to feel part of the community.

And since no post is complete without a little voyeurism, here is a sneak peak of some of the gorgeous hats I’ve whipped up this week.

The shop’ll be going on holiday over the weekend so if you’re in desperate need of a Lego fix or you really need a lovely new tote bag or sun hat, you’ll just have to mosey over to South London and come visit  us on the stall.

Overwhelming March 16, 2010

I’m going to be completely honest here: the looming prospect of a certain enormous knitting event is beginning to make me feel a little ill. Excited but ill. Like a rollercoaster.

Alex came over yesterday and ironed a bunch of interfacing onto some fabric for me. I would have done some sewing butI managed to slice my thumb up when I was putting up the ironing board and figured that no one really wanted me bleeding all over the beautiful fabric. It really doesn’t add anything. So instead I whimpered a bit, cooked dinner and enjoyed not being sat at my sewing machine!

This evening I’ve been carving up fabric ready to turn it all into pretty new bags and things. See:

It doesn’t look it now, but that’s six yarn pouches of varying sizes and a needle roll.  And yes, those ARE sock monkeys.

I’m going to bed.

Sarah

Busy, busy March 13, 2010

Just popping in (at 1 am. Because that’s normal.) to show you some photos of what I’m up to this evening.

Alex is out having a wonderful time ( I hope) strolling through the Thames tunnel for her birthday, and I am sitting here, unable to sleep for no apparent reason, and chopping up fabric like a crazy person.

Zippered purses

Owls, owls, everywhere

Swirly, whirly

Circular needle case pieces

I’ve made five bags so far this week, so if I can get a few more bits and pieces sewn up over the weekend I’m doing well. It’s a slow process, but I figure steady bursts of sustained activity are better than the manic last minute dash. My little stockpile is growing steadily. 20 bags, a bunch of little zippered purses and a couple of needle cases at the moment, with more cut out and ready to sew. We’ll get there.

And all of a sudden, on that note, I am really sleepy! I’m going to go crash before it wears off.

Long day’s journey into… longer night. February 27, 2010

Totally exhausted this evening. Cannot be bothered to form full sentences.

Tomorrow’s Orlaith’s 4th birthday. So today has been spent on making birthday cakes, buying supplies for party bags, maniacally tidying (which I’m taking a  brief break from to type this) and, oddly and incongruously, sewing. A lot.

Alex & I had the first of what should hopefully be a number of sewing bees. Didn’t get a massive amount done, due to the aforementioned cake-making, but Alex extended the lines of my smaller yarn pouch to make a template for a pouch that can hold straight knitting needles. We’ve cut out a couple of those and Alex got a chance to have a look in person at my cicular needle case design. It got a thumb’s up, so I’ll try and crank out a proper template for that too, so we can get rolling a bit more.

As well as all that, I managed to finish off four or five more yarn pouches today. Add that to the couple I did through the week, and the needle case and bag I made, and that brings me up to speed for the week.

(We worked out we need to make at least 5 items per week between now and July to have enough stock.  Mmm, quotas. We’re our own personal sweat shop. Sigh.)

And now I return you to whatever the heck you’re up to, and I go back to tidying like a fiend. Blah.

Sarah