on sale!

EARTH DAY SPECIAL!!!

All tote bags and grocery totes are HALF OFF through Earth Day and beyond! I will be outta town so any orders purchased between April 19th and April 27th will be shipped as soon as I get back. If you mention my blog in the message to seller I will also send you a t-shirt bag. It's a bag made from a shirt! I need to make some room for fresh spring items; out with the old, in with the new. Plus, I know there are people out there still who use those yucky plastic or paper bags, that's a big NO NO on the earth friendly scale. Also, Momma's Day is coming up and momma's love cute things, just something to think about.

Help me help you help the earth.

love,
~*michelle*~

p.s. don't forget to check out my favorites from other etsy sellers

Team Eco Etsy March Madness

Hi all! I hope you are ready for this month's promotion, I sure am! Follow the link here March Madness to see all the amazing Etsy shops (including my own) who are giving away free nifty gifts of green goodness with each order!

I am giving away either a t-shirt grocery tote or a draw string accessories bag. After you place your order with any one of the shops you type the promo code "Free and Green" in the message to seller box. The message to seller can be found when completing your Etsy transaction. Also, make note of which freebie you would prefer in the message to seller box.

Other participating shops sell all sorts of goods that are considered earth-friendly and are all handmade. What more could you want!!! Spread the word!

All of the shops that are part of EcoEtsy can be found by searching from Etsy's home page using the keyword "teamecoetsy", although not all of these shops are participating in March Madness, they are still part of a team that promotes REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE.

love,
~*michelle*~
team eco etsy

Another Year

Are you ready for even more new bags? Well, they are on their way!

I have been trying to stay on top of the sewing pile (new years resolution # 271) and have been doing fairly well considering all the other things that keep me preoccupied (todd, hops, museum, 30 rock, the interweb, oh ya and that whole wedding thing).

I have even finished projects that were lying around for six months or worse christmas presents that were never completed (sorry Danielle, #1 sister extraordanaire)! I am well stocked (labels, cards, fabric, needles, thread) so I should be getting lots of work done. I am excited and I think this next year will be better than the last which was great!

I bought some cards that will be sent with each danikai order (thanks tommymama.etsy.com ), just as a final touch for all my wonderful customers. Did you hear? Danikai just went INTERNATIONAL! I sold two bags to Japan and one to Canada. I really need to fine tune the int'l shipping however so it doesn't end up costing anyone an arm and a leg. Maybe you have some tips from your own experience....?

Thanks for reading and shopping and doing what you do ;)

love,
~*michelle*~

TC Photography

Hi all,

Todd took the plunge and got a shoppe started on Etsy! You can check out his gorgeous work by clicking the image below.



love,
~*michelle&todd*~

I can hardly wait

Only eight days left but for now click here to see Obama on Etsy!!!

New Year and New Bags

Hello all! I hope everyone had an awesome New Year! I got to see my wonderful family and everyone is excited to see what me and Todd decide to do as far as wedding plans go.... so much to do! Todd was able to reshoot a bunch of my photos on etsy. Check them out at my shoppe

I have a couple I.O.U.s I have to get done this weekend (I know, I am so bad) and then I will be adding fairly regularly after that. Let me know what you think of the new photos. Feedback brings you good karma.

A HUGE thank you to all who bought bags while I was in San Diego, you are the reason I do all this sewing of bags and bags and bags. thank you Thank You THANK YOU!!!!!!!

love,
~*michelle*~

I never knew...

...that there were so many different types of sewing needles! This whole time I thought my sewing machine was giving me a hard time and all I had to do was buy a variety of needles for a variety of fabrics and projects. I was getting so frustrated and beginning to doubt my machine but turns out I just needed to make it happy. Now I am sewing with the pros!

You might have noticed my shop is on "vacation mode" that just means I will be back in action on December 15th. I am almost ready for this weekend and a bit nervous because I am not quite sure if I have enough bags. Wish me luck!

Also, pictures of the booth to come!

Craft Fair Booth

This is just a small sample of new bags I have that are not posted on my shop. I have lots of new totes and shopping bags that I think everyone will enjoy! If they don't sell at the fair they will be posted on the 15th for your viewing pleasure :)

Theresa and I staged our booth for the craft fair this past Saturday. I think it is going to be quite lovely. For those of you who won't be able to make it :( I will be sure to get some pictures. We were not sure what to do and then it just all came together thanks to a shiny piece of gold fabric, trust me it looks awesome! I am so excited to show off all my creations.

My shop will be closed (i.e. "on vacation" mode) 12/10-12/14 in preparation for the craft fair. I have lots of organizing and inspecting to do so I think this will make things easier for me. Things will be up and running soon after, don't fret!

Did everyone have a family fun filled turkey day?!?! Todd and I went to see Role Models it was hilarious well at least the first half was then it just got silly. I am so excited to see my family in a few short weeks at Christmas. Oh and my little brother is turning 21! What kind of shenanigans could we possibly get into....

love,
~*michelle*~

p.s. I think I might throw my bobbin winder out the window for Hops to chew on, this thing is driving me insane!

Craft Fair Countdown Has Begun

Come see me and Theresa at this year's Holiday Craft Market. We'll have bags and shrines and bags and art and bags for sale!!!

love,
~*michelle*~

Amp Cover for Todd

Um ya, I made Todd an amp cover for his vintage '65 Ampeg Jet and it is pretty awesome. The color in the photo came out bad unfortunately. Imagine Padres colors in the 80s: gold stitching on a nutmeg color canvas. I am hoping others may be interested although I don't need to add to my list of things to do.

love,
~*michelle*~

Your Thoughts

Dearest friends,

I have a new banner at the top of my shop... any constructive criticisms? I am still playing with format and getting it from photoshop where it is crisp to the world wide web where is becomes blurry. Any useful tips on that are much appreciated.

Also, FREE SHIPPING through the new year! "OMG" is what you just said when you read that.

All purchases now come with a little special something and it is all wrapped up using recycled packaging materials and fabric scraps. Not in a janky sort of way but in a way that will make you all warm and fuzzy inside.

love,
~*michelle*~

Sew What

I have been going non-stop for the past few weeks... babysitting for five different families, work at the museum, and sewing. I can't believe I haven't got sick despite less sleep and poor eating habits.

With the craft fair quickly approaching, I am feeling the pressure and find myself dreading sitting down at my sewing machine. I try to avoid it by doing anything but sewing. This little game does not last very long seeing as there is not much to do when it rains for a week straight. I have about 20 finished bags I haven't posted on Etsy and even more cut out just waiting to be all stitched up. I am really focused on grocery/shopping totes.

In a perfect world all my bags will be sold so I can buy all the sweet items I have been collecting on my Etsy Favorites page! I have completely gone from finding things I want to get for others to selfishly looking for myself. I am sorry but I can't help it with all the cool handmade and vintage goodies.

As I mentioned it has been raining, a lot. It will pretty much rain until May with short bursts of sunshine and rainbows. On my way home the other day I saw a double rainbow over a pasture. I could see the whole thing! I pulled over to take a picture and my camera battery was dead, so sad. Here is a cheater picture I didn't take...


love,
~*michelle*~

I Finally Made A Shirt

This is my first real shirt. I am pretty stoked on how it turned out and it wasn't that hard at all. I pretty much just started cutting around a shirt I have that fits me well. The fabric is some sort of soft synthetic knit in a magenta color and I used my favorite fabric ever to add a little something extra. Now I have an excuse to go out, hint hint Todd ;) So I am getting ready for this craft fair. This means sleeping less and sewing more. I have never been so productive and experimental. Just today I made the tiniest little handbag just to practice some stitches and work out the kinks in a couple new techniques. So far so good! I am hoping to make some really nice totes and purses from this design.

Hmmmmm what else is going on with me...??? Oh ya last night and this morning there have been little earthquakes. Hops has not been too happy about this and seems concerned about the fact that we live on top of a pool. Not sure how it will hold up if a big earthquake was to occur. You are probably wondering, "Who is Hops?", well he is my border colllie. Just the other day the chickens got out and he helped herd them in the coop. All of his herding instincts just kicked in and from what I hear he did a good job. I am going to take him on a walk now.

What a cutie!

love,
~*michelle*~

Kids and Babies

Here are some kids and babies gift I picked out for this round of handmade goodness holiday gift giving guide ;)

Too cute

I will be adding to this list so check back!

love,
~*michelle*~

Visit My Shop

Finally

Fabric and labels are on there way to my house as we speak. I am so excited to post new bags, it has been way to long! My shop should be all updated by this weekend. I have lots of cute new styles so check my shop when you get a chance.

love, ~*michelle*~