ARTFULLY YOURS WILLIAMSBURG

Artfully Yours is a beautiful shop in the Art District of Williamsburg, Virginia. They opened a little bit earlier this year, and I was so excited when the asked me if I would be interested in selling anykind there. They have all kinds of accessories, jewelry, art, prints, kids stuff and more - all created and handmade in Virginia. The shop is in a gorgeous old house with so much space and light - they also have a big upstairs where they have craft classes and events.

I took these photos when I visited earlier in May. I just went back to take some more things this past weekend, and they had already gotten so much more neat stuff and rearranged a few things. I'm really happy to be included in the awesome variety of handmade things this shop has. I also love how my things look with how the old house and how they've decorated. So that's an added bonus.

EMBRACE THE CULTURE FESTIVAL

Last Saturday was the Embrace the Culture Festival in downtown Norfolk. It's an indie music and arts festival - there were bands all day, about thirty vendors, food trucks, and a lot of other things going on. I was so excited to set up and be a part of this. It was the second time I had a tent space to myself (the first time was in Athens!). It was a really fun day - Douglas was able to come, and he hasn't been to a big show with me since Christmas. My friend Alena came and hung out with us all day - about twelve hours!

It was also a really fun day because so many of the crafty people I have met at other various shows since moving here were at this event, so it was really fun walking around and seeing everyone and their tents. Another things I loved about this event was that it ran until 10 at night, so when it got dark everyone started turning on their lights and the whole place was all cozy and glow-y.

MY LITTLE SHIPPING STATION

One of my favorite parts of having an Etsy shop is wrapping up orders and shipping them out. I always think it's really nice to get a package that has a little extra thought put into the wrapping, so I really wanted a cohesive, pretty way to wrap up orders. I got almost all these supplies from Etsy - the kraft paper tissue, thick bakers twine, black and white washi tape.

A few weeks ago, when I was reorganizing and cleaning my work room, I put all my packaging supplies into this old, wooden box for easy access to move it wherever I need it. I've also started writing more letters recently - with old friends who live far away. So it's nice to have some pretty little things at hand for that, too.

NORFOLK'S FIRST "FIRST FRIDAY"

I was so excited to set up at Norfolk's inaugural First Friday on Granby Street last week. I wish I had a chance to take photos outside our little area, but once 6:00 rolled around, we were busy and chatting with people the whole time. It was a really fun night. A huge highlight was that Douglas got to come with me - he hasn't been a show with me since we first moved here. That was my favorite part. I'd be lying if I said it was easy being here away from our family and friends, with Douglas gone so much, but nights like this make it better. We're doing things to make it better. 

RICHMOND SPRING BADA BING

This past Saturday I was in Richmond for the Spring Bada Bing. I have to say, it's one of my favorite shows I've ever done. It was an awesome day. The show was at Hardywood Brewery, so it was a really cool venue with barrels and huge...beer-brewing things everywhere. There was a really relaxed atmosphere to the whole day - people were just hanging out, looking around, drinking beer. I am so lucky that my friend Katie was here to help me - it was a busy day, too. We had so much fun chatting with people and taking turns looking around at the other vendors. 

I'll be back sometime this week with a shop update and some other news! See you.

PIECES OF MY WEEK // 7

1// 2// work table + making pouches

3// pile of things to pack

4// new black glittery banner

5// unused octahedrons (you can get the pattern here)

6// finished little pouches

7// scraps

I am so excited about the Spring Bada Bing this Saturday. Here is a look into my work week leading up to this weekend. I am also extremely excited about one of my best friends coming to visit for a few days and getting to have fun at this show with me. We're going to have an extra day hanging around Richmond and then a few days back in Norfolk spending time together.

I'm off to Richmond - have a great weekend.

ANYKIND SHOP RE-OPENING

Today my Etsy shop is finally re-open! After posting a picture from my workroom or markets here and there, I'm excited to finally have everything posted and ready to share. I temporarily closed my shop in December to get reorganized, but left it down longer than expected to plan some new ideas and get everything just right.  A few months, yards of fabric, and one shoddy light box later, here we are. 

Some new things I've added to the shop are smaller hair bows, shoulder bags with leather straps, new pouch sizes (big and small), and men's bow ties. And of course, there are lots of new fabric colors and patterns, too. I also added a sale section, and I have a lot more to add to it. 

My new favorite thing to make are these men's clip-on bow ties. It's really fun to choose fabrics that aren't for bags...that are pretty much intended for females. There is some overlap in the fabrics, but I've found a few really perfect fabric for bow ties. 

I hope you enjoy looking through everything. I'm so excited to finally get it together and have this to work on again. Thanks for looking!