Appleby Lane

For the long time blog readers, you'll remember I set up a "sewing company" called Appleby Lane, which I made sewn items to sell online and at craft shows.  You'll also remember I had to give it up as the arthritis in my hands was making it difficult.

The other week daughter was asking if I could make her some soup bowl cozies, as soup and chili season is upon us.  I said yes no problem.  She was then talking about how everyone at her work loves her lanyards I made her.

As I had a basket of leftover things from my Appleby Lane days, I asked her if she would consider taking the things to her work to see if anyone wanted anything.  Plus I would make extra soup bowl cozies to sell and some lanyards.

Here are the soup bowl cozies I made.  I did have to buy a metre of batting at a cost of $20 for these; the fabric is all that I had on hand.  I am selling them for $20 a pair.

Here are the lanyards.  I had everything on hand for these, and am selling them for $10 each.

I ran out of the silver hooks, otherwise I would have made more of them.

I spent Friday afternoon sorting out the basket of other things I had and pricing and bagging everything for daughter.  Fingers crossed she sells the odd thing.  Then I can get rid of more stuff in my spare bedroom closet!!

I enjoyed the sewing, but if I counted my time for making these things, I would make pennies per hour as a wage.  I do it because I enjoy it, not to make a living thankfully.  I still have mounds of fabric, so need to pull more together to sell.

Goodness me......

 It's been forever since I last posted.  I am around, just didn't feel as though I have had anything worth sharing with you.  I have missed blogging though and I am finding the older I get the more I forget things 😊 so at least when I blog, I can look back on things and it reminds me.  I have to say that's one thing I like about Facebook, old posts pop up in memories and remind me of all sorts of things.

I have found since the covid pandemic things have been harder and even though we are all double vaccinated I am still not comfortable being out and about in crowds.  If people get close to me in the stores, even though everyone has masks on, I still don't like it.  I know people are travelling; but I am not happy doing that, though I would dearly love to go back to the UK for a vacation.  "R" and her family just came back from Mexico and the resort itself was fine, with only 25% capacity.  It was the travelling there and back that was stressful.  We are not willing to expose ourselves to those type's of situations yet.

We have gained another member of our family.  Our son and his wife had another gorgeous little boy back in June.  Evan James is growing like a weed and will be 2 months old in a couple of days time. He is our last grandchild.  Everyone has said their families are complete.

All the rest of the grands are growing like weeds also.  Nitara will be 9 in January, Nora will be 8 in November, Sam will be 7 in September.  Jeina and Paige were 5 in May & June.  Liam was 3 in May and Evan was born in June.  That's right I have four birthday's from the end of May until the end of June.

Dh is still working, in fact has never stopped during this pandemic, made no difference at all.  He will be having his annual vacation shortly thank goodness.  It has been hot and humid these past few weeks and it's really making dh weary.  We have no plans to go anywhere, but I do have plans for things that need doing around the house...he will be thrilled..LOL

I have stopped sewing for Appleby Lane, my poor hands are getting too arthritic to do a lot of sewing.  I just make odds and ends for the family and myself now.  So I have been busy making jigsaw puzzles and reading while hibernating from the heat.  Thank goodness for air conditioning.

So there you are a little catch up and I think I will start blogging again.  Keep an eye out for the next post.  Hope everyone is well and please stay safe.

Online Auction...........

I have had a super busy week and now I have set up an online auction on my Facebook page Appleby Lane for the weekend.  It started last night and ends on Sunday night at 6:30 pm EST.  Everything listed is at least 50% off, so some great deals to be had.  Here is a link to the site

I plan on catching you all up on what has been happening.  Which will include the weather, bathroom renovations (it's finished😄), visit to the hospital and lots of other things!!

Have a super weekend, you'll know where I will be.....on Facebook!!

Just a warning swear word fabric will be shown!!

I had an order for a toiletry/wash bag the other day, so I made a couple of extra ones for the shop.  Thought I'd share with you the fabric choices.  Both bags have a laminated cotton lining, so waterproof that I get from Dailylike Canada.  Very high quality fabric and well worth the money.

I fell in love with this fabric when I saw it, but didn't have any idea what I was going to make with it.  Just love how it all worked out, reminds me of the 1920's.

Now this one has swear words on it and says, "Where's My F**king Wine!"  Would be perfect for that wine lover in the family.  They both sell for $25 each, plus shipping if needed.  For more swear word fabric products click on this link.  I will be making more products using the fabric.

This is the one I made for a custom order.  The Llama fabric is so flipping cute, don't you think.

I also make all the zipper pulls myself.  So after not doing much sewing for the past month, I am back into it again.

If you want to see what else I make please click on this link for Appleby Lane.

This is how I feel........

Must say I am glad Christmas is over and done with for another year.  I know New Year's Eve/Day is a day to celebrate but we never do much on that day.  It used to be the day I took down all the Christmas decorations as I had the day off work, but nowadays with not working I usually have them down sooner than that.  This year everything was put away on Boxing Day.  I wanted the house back to normal and not all cluttered up with Christmas stuff.

I do leave the Christmas cards up until the 12th night; you can read more about that here.  My hubby works for most of the Christmas period as he is in maintenance and the factory is shut down for the Christmas holidays, so all the machinery must be serviced, etc.  So I barely see him for the two weeks.

Our son hosted Christmas this year and it was lovely to see everyone and enjoy a lovely Christmas meal.  Dh and I were spoiled by the kids and I got a Nespresso coffee machine from them, and dh got a sound bar for the tv.  Santa was good to them as well from what I could see.  The kids got lots and lots of toys to play with, so they were happy.

I have taken a couple of weeks off from Appleby Lane and one of the jobs I am doing is decorating the downstairs bathroom.  What should have been a quick job has turned into an extensive renovation.  Dh started back at the end of November.  I will do a post about it all soon as we should be finished with it all in the next week or so.  If we had known what we were letting ourselves in for we wouldn't have started it when we did...........the joys of buying a house from someone who thinks they know it all😒

Oh yes I have eaten way too much, so need to get back into the healthy eating way of life again..........right after I have eaten the last of the chocolate😁

How was your Christmas?

Another craft show, want your thoughts.....

I have another craft show coming up this Saturday November 30th.  I am only participating on the Saturday, as I have mixed feeling about participating in, in these types of events.  

Here is my "photo collage" I had to submit to get approved for the show.  My daughter did it for me and I do love how it looks.  Everything in this poster is available to purchase.

I have found there's a 50/50 chance of it being a total washout or a success with a craft show and there are pro's and con's to them.

Pro's:

• you get to meet a lot of lovely people........and I have met some great people
• you make a lot of contacts and get your name out there
• you sell your things
• you get to see what other people are selling/making
• you go to places you have never been before

Con's:

• you sell nothing (thank goodness it's never happened to me....yet!)
• you meet some very strange people
• it's tiring, especially if there are not a lot of people attending
• it can be demoralizing when people hum and ha over things and nit pick
• it's hard being nice and smiley when you know for a fact people have no interest in buying anything

As this is my first year doing this, I am making notes about various places and make notes of what I sell at each event.  The verdict is out yet on what I will do in the future regarding craft shows.  

Do you like going to craft show?  Have you been a vendor at a craft show?  I would love to hear your thoughts about this.........

I will be following these instructions word by word.......

Or maybe not!!!!  I will however be sewing for a bit of the day as I do have a show again this coming weekend, and do want to replenish some stock.  I did finally get a couple sets of soup bowl cozies finished yesterday:

I love both patterns.  Which one do you like the best?  I sell these in the shop for $15 a pair.

I also picked up my Christmas arrangement for the outside from a local home business yesterday and it is gorgeous:

I just love the galvanized pail its in.

Scrunchies.........

Been busy sewing scrunchies this week........well not all week, I was being a lazy bum when it came to sewing this week and didn't do much.

Anyhow, I decided to make these ones in baby corduroy, which means it is a finer corduroy.  Not sure if they will sell, but if they don't I have four grand daughters who will put them too good use.  I love the floral fabric the best; which one do you like?

I bought the basket they are in to put on the table at the next show I am in from the dollar store.  I can think of a couple of uses for it when not using in shows.  I bought another basket for the Xmas Pocket Tissue holders:

Do you shop at the dollar stores.........which by the way half the time things are not a dollar, but that's a whole other story😊

Ducts, Scrunchies and Peas.....

Odd combination don't you think?

Had the heating ducts cleaned today.  The house is 12 years old and the heating ducts had never been cleaned out.  So just under $250 later (we also have an HRV system) they are nice and clean.  However this is only part of what came out:

Just nasty what we had been breathing in........

I picked up a 50 cent bag of scrap fabric the other day with the goal of making scrunchies for the girls.  Got 8 made with the bag of scraps.

The blue fabric is like a velvet/minky fabric that sheds like crazy, so had to give my machine a good clean out after I had finished.  So a little thread, 60 inches of 1/2 inch elastic and three scrap pieces of fabric and my time was all it took to make those.

Now for the peas.  Made a couple more sets of pea fabric produce bags.  I just love this fabric.

I will thread the drawstrings through after I publish this post, then they are all ready to sell.  A set of three is $20 in my shop.

Thank you for all your suggestions.......

regarding the craft shows.

I always try and say "Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening" when people pass by.  I am fortunate I can talk to anyone about anything.  I will try and make sure things are clearly marked; price wise.  When talking to others, a lot of people said they have been too shows and not sold a thing, so I was lucky to at least have sold a couple of things.

I need to focus on the two other shows and my internet business.  I signed up for a business account with Canada Post and every Tuesday during the month of October I can send one parcel up to 5 kg free of charge in Canada.  If anyone has been eyeing anything on my Facebook Page or if you don't have Facebook and would like to know if I could ship an item you know I make just let me know.  This coming week's free shipping hasn't been snapped up yet.

I have these knitting bags in the shop they are $45 each and will make a great gift:

For anyone going on a trip to the islands during the winter I have beach bags and matching toiletry bags that would make perfect gifts.

Fish beach bag $35, Fish toiletry bag (waterproof lining) $25.  Combo price $55

 Toiletry Bag 10 inches x 9 inches

Coral Beach Bag $35, Coral Toiletry Bag (waterproof lining) $20.  Combo Price $50

 Toiletry Bag 9 inches wide x 7 1/2 inches high

I also have a couple of reversible back packs, so two bags in one still in stock that would make super gifts.

The British themed one is $40  Approx. 14 inches square.

 The Sunshine one has a lemon back. $40 Approx. 14 inches square

Here is another photo with a peek of the reversible side:

For more of what I sell visit my Appleby Lane store on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/applebylane64/

Busy preparing for a craft show (photo heavy).

I am participating in a craft show on Thursday evening at a local high school.  Cost me $30 and I have to bring my own table 😁

Anyhow thought I'd share some photos of with you of some things I will be taking, more to show you the fabric patterns.  My biggest sellers are produce bags I have both fruit and veggie prints, but just showing you some of the veggie prints.  I sell these for $20 for a set of three bags.

 Love this pea print.

Soup bowl cozies, I sell these at $15 per pair:

Dogs

 Cats

 Tula Pink Owl/Moth with abstract print reverse

 Mushroom with grey reverse

 Tula Pink Froggies, with abstract purple/blue/green reverse

 Dragonfly and Waterlily, with coordinating reverse

Made some more Knitting Bags, but only have two left to take to the show:

Knitting words with bright green leaves lining

 Pink sheep with green lining.

I have many more things I am taking this is just a peek!!

They are all listed on my Facebook site: Appleby Lane

Knitting Bag Bush..........

I have one in my garden do you? 😊

I have been making knitting bags these past couple of days for the Appleby Lane Shop.  As the weather is so nice thought I'd take a photograph of them on my hydrangea bush.

This has to be my favourite time of year.  The mornings and nights are cool, but it is nice and sunny during the day.  Took some photos the other day of the changing colours in the garden.

This Fall weather we are having at the moment, makes you glad to be alive..........

Catch up...........

It's been a while sorry.  Things have taken off with the Appleby Lane store, and honestly it has caught me by surprise.  So something had to give and it was my blog, which is a crying shame as I enjoy doing it.  Also reading has taken a back seat as well, which is another thing I love to do, but again, I can't do it all.

So here is an abbreviated version of what I have been up too.  I was back at the doctors at the beginning of September.  13 lbs lighter and I had brought one set of numbers down from 10.3 to 7, and the other set of numbers (the important one) down from 7.1 to 7.  Straight after that we went to the UK for a 10 day trip and I came home 3 lbs heavier and full of cold...........

Dh then had his blood work done and went to the doctors and was told his numbers are too high.  He got a blood glucose machine as well and we both started to monitor our numbers, which resulted in me nearly having a meltdown because my numbers are all over the place.  Called the nurse and she says everything is good.  Which in turn made me even more confused and has resulted in me now not using the blasted machine and I will have blood work done at the beginning of December as planned and we will see where I stand then...................and before I get lectures from everyone, yes I am in denial and no I haven't fallen off the wagon, but this taking the blood is making me more stressed and I can't/won't deal with it.

Good news, 3 lbs lighter again, so back to where I was at the beginning of September.  Bad news though, had the grands over the weekend, so good eating went down the tube!!  Good news, good eating back on again!! Also still not on any meds for the diabetes.

Went to the UK for a 10 day trip and it only rained once............who knew that the words UK and good weather could be said in the same sentence!!  Especially when you are staying in the North of England and Southern Scotland!!

Did my first craft show with Appleby Lane and it was good, sold a few things and have got three shows more booked between now and the end of November.  I have lost my mojo since I have been away, so need a kick in the butt to get my creative juices flowing again.

Meanwhile I feel like this at the moment:

I will try and make an effort to do a blog post every other day to see how that goes and go from there.  Too everyone who follows me thank you for your patience, I do appreciate you, one and all!  Now off too pee😁

You're in the know before the rest!!

I had appointments at the doctor's office on Tuesday so didn't get a lot of sewing done, but I did get a couple of these made..........

They are for opening lids.  I am having a heck of a time with my thumbs and am finding it difficult to open things.  This is my answer to that difficulty.  The bottom is actually shelf liner, as it grips to everything.

What do you think?  I plan on making more and listing them on the shop.

I am sorry I have been away........

however I was busy sewing up a storm for the open house on Saturday.  I was up and all organized well before the 10 am posted opening time.

It was a hot and humid day with just a few drops of rain, but overall it was a good day weather wise.

It was a great day for other reasons as well.  I got to meet two long time readers of my blog.  You know who you are and it was a pleasure to be able to spend a little time with you.  I got to sell a number of my items and sold a lot more than I thought I would, so thank you too everyone who bought from me.

My best selling items were the produce bags, and the soup bowl cozies.

I did take a couple of photos of everything set up:

I took a video also but you do have to go to Facebook and too Appleby Lane to see it.

I am writing this Saturday night and am pooped.  However not too tired to order more fabric online!!  I also ran a couple of errands and called into a fabric store on Saturday afternoon and picked up 1/2 metre of this fabric, as I have an idea of something to make with it!!

I will be updating the Facebook store on Sunday to get everything up to date.

Again thank you everyone for all your support.