Berawal dari hobby hunting tas,……akhirnya jadi mo nyoba juga pengen jajain tas…..There’s some of them

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*Tas Serut

*Tas Semangka

Its a secret!  Im so excited and thankful to be doing gift cards this year!  They are so fun to put together.

Can I just say I love Squash Blossom! They are so sweet and supportive of the things I make.     This Friday everything in the store is 25% off from 9am-1pm (this includes my bags!)

I am loving making these smaller bags!  Im doing much more hand stitching these days and loving it.  Its much more enjoyable and peaceful than sewing on the machine.   I cant even tell you how much fun I had doing my leather tree for the Whitespace show.   Hopefully soon I will have some good photos to post.   The show is opening in just two days!

Today I sent six bags out to new shop that seems like a perfect match!  Its called PAULA and its in Tustin, Ca.  Next week is their four year Anniversary, so the bags should get there just in time!

Ive been having fun making all kinds of new things like necklaces and earing with the smallest of leather scraps.All the holiday shows and opening are QUICKLY approaching!  I have so much to do including making an artist tree for the For-Ever-Green Artist Christmas Tree lot.  Im so excited!  I went to the show last year and wanted to make my own tree as soon as I got home.  The opening is Dec. 3rd, the same night as the opening for the Mini Angel Boutique that I will be putting bags in! Whewwwww!!!!

Squash Blossom has my bags in stock now.  Just dropped these three today.

They were unpacking some really fun vegan leather jackets when I went by there that were like $75.oo!!  My bags of course are soooooo NOT vegan, but I do what I can to get reclaimed leather.

Squash Blossom Boutique

113 E Court Square
Decatur, GA 30030-2521
(404) 373-1864

Cant wait for Saturday!!  It should be the first sunny day in like two weeks, so hopefully people will be out and about in downtown Decatur!

MY WEBSITE IS UP!!!!    Thank you! Finally!

www.amandagary.com

I have lots to say about where I got these amazing chairs.  Im not ready to yet though.    This photo would look much better if I had a screen to filter the sun a little.   Oh yeah and a way better camera.  Thats fine though.   I am loving the summer.

Tula has always layed on whatever Im working on.

This hair dryer chair still works!!  It blocks out sound around you and  you cant hear much.   Its like your in some kind of time machine or meditation seat.   My grandmother, Mary Ellen, did hair and Ive been told this was her first hair dryer.  Years later she gave it to my other grandmother who is named Francis, so she could dry her hair at home.    I got it from her basement a few years ago.

I just finished this new bag in the seat.  Its in my etsy store.   Im basically building inventory for some trunk shows in the fall.

Ive never really been a clutch girl, but I really love making them.   two zipper pockets and a stretchy pocket + magnetic closure.

thankful for summer days in the studio.   lots of new stuff.  will keep posting

this one will be on my etsy page

www.amandagary.etsy.com

I know enough of people are making useful things with old coffee sacks and its really not that original, but it makes me really happy to work with these bags and combine them with my leather work.     Some people even say that the burlap sheds a little, but I only think its annoying if you are wearing black.  I have four dogs, so I guess I don’t notice a little burlap DNA.

My friend Carolyn had been waiting on me to make her one of these bags for about six months.  She actually held my favorite sunglasses hostage until I finished.  I met her at this great new restaurant in Decatur called Leon’s Full Service Bar the the exchange.    This is definately my favorite new place to eat + drink.  Its actually appropriate that we met there since they serve Counter Culture Coffee, which is the amazing company that I get the bags from.  Hi Byron.

My friend Byron Holcomb who is the Atlanta sales rep for Counter Culture Coffee has been bringing me the most beautiful coffee bean sacks I have ever seen.    Many of them are hand painted.  I started by doing my own bags and then ended up doing some projects for the company like using the coffee sacks to make business card holders for all the reps.   I just finished a wall hanging that is a collage of many of my favorite coffee sacks.  I did some hand stitching embellishment in my most favorite places.

Counter Culture Coffee

21/1/09 :   A few more blocks finished

This is my “Dear Jane” journey…

Early 2008:  I attended a DJ starter class at SomerSet Patchwork with my friend Vikki.  My idea was originally to do civil war fabrics close to the orginal DJ, but then decided I would do pink & brown civil war fabrics starting pale in the middle and deeping out to the edges to red and chocolate.   The cones would be a mix of the fabrics used in the blocks.  I  never said I would do the “whole quilt” …. just see where I end up.  This quilt will be my “in between projects Project”!

Tips I’ve picked up:

• Take you DJ book to OfficeWorks – have them cut off the spine, then bind it with clear pastic covers for the front and back covers.  This enables you to have book flat when drafting patterns.
• Copy and/or enlarge the chart in the book (page 12) if you are not using the DJ software.  Cut out squares of your fabric and glue on the sheet for planning colour/fabric placement.
• When constructing the quilt top, divide the quilt into a nine patch and stitch blocks in groupings, then put together as a large nine patch.

Blocks done to date:

A3, A6, A7, A8, B3, B4, B8, C9, D6, D7, D8, C7, H6, H13, I11, J4 AND another 10 cut ready to sew.

“The Dear Jane”

Atlanta Christmas time with Anh.

we stopped by Whitespace Gallery to the Forever Green tree lot.

I was able to finally satisfied my craving for roasted marshmellows.  Im an excellent roaster.

The gallery was offering all the ingredients for the full out S’more, but

I just stuck to my plain roasted marshmellow.  It was Anh’s FIRST time

to roast!!   I made sure to tell her to keep it near the hot embers and not the flame.

Usually if someone catches their marshmellow

on fire almost always they say “I like it burnt.”  Okay so, whatever.

The new location for the Indie Craft Experience was so much better than the last two years Ive done it.  There was heat, light (for most people) and clean bathrooms!   I had fun getting my setup ready with my white wheel barrow, and ladder.   I have been on a white kick after spending time in Natalie Chanin’s alabama universe.  I even painted my buddha white.  It just so happened that Anh keeps a role of pink duct tape handy, so we decorated the floor around our space.   It was a wall crawlers party at the ladder for most of the day.  Sweet Julie on her crutches.  thank you everyone for coming to see me and supporting what I do.  you’re all the best!  Mr. Matt Hanner got up at and helped us at 7:30am, moved our cars, and carried heavy stuff.   John Hur brough me a Baldinos Italian sub and his help loading up plus kisses later. By the way mandy, I got the hug you sent home with John tonight.  I enjoyed it very much.

This is what I did that night.  It feels really good to take some cold medicine and put this warm heater just on your feet.  I was as relaxed as I can be without being totally asleep.  I love that.  That heater is Korean by the way.

Today I’m preparing for this weekend’s ‘Museumsuferfest’ that actually starts tomorrow afternoon.  I need to label and price up all the bags, then pack them. Well, firstly I need to choose which ones I’m taking with me.  There are always a few that I never take and therefore never sell.  I’m thinking of having a few cheaper/on sale ones…  Do you think that’s a good idea or will it look silly. I mean, they might not be my favourite but I’ve noticed with other bags that they simply need to find the right person, there is someone out there that might think they are great. Hmmmm.  I really don’t know what to do.

Anyway, other than that I need to prepare and pack all the stand.  I’m still at somewhat of a loss about the display though.  My whole idea went out the window last weekend when we went to the hardware store and found out that the type of board that I wanted to buy doesn’t even exist here in Germany.  The problem is that simply renting the 6 square meters for the weekend is costing a small fortune, so I don’t want to spend too much on the display.  But at the same time if I don’t present the bags well, they wont sell.  So it’s a difficut situation all around. I have few more ideas.  So, we’ll be going to the hardware store again tonight after my husband comes back from work. The poor guy, he hates these desperate trips to the hardware store :-) Hopefully one of these ideas will actually be ‘do-able’.  Whatever happens I’ll take some pictures and post them next week so you can to see how the display turned out. 

Other than that I need to think about all the small things like getting change, packing bags, receipts, etc, etc.  Plus I still have loads of little bags and moblie pouches that I want to make, so that there are smaller bits too, not just big bags, for little presents.

So wish me luck…  I might not have a chance to write again until next week so have a nice weekend!

More red Lobo’s for fall? maybe a little different…? ummmm, fall. In the meantime, I have to go in tv detox. Since the Olympics started Ive watched more tv in the past week that I have in the last two years combined. I told John that as soon as its over Im moving the tv out of our bedroom forever. Its it necessary to show so much womens beach volleyball. I love admiring their tan lean bodies and everything, but otherwise, its boring as shit. Have sportscasters always been this annoying? It drives me crazy how they are always trying to create these mini dramas between the athletes. Just shut up. The only person I want to talk is Bela Karolyi.

i carry this one.

Pretty much just wanted to put up more pictures of my bags.

Just finished this bag today. It took me about 10 hours. Tomorrow its going to Stefani’s store in Roswell (Veruca). She’s had several people waiting on black from me. I taken so long to start working in black leathers that I’m surprised they didn’t find something else. I’m thankful they’ve been so patient with me. The next few will be similar I’m thinkin. I have to figure what number this one is. I had originally named this shape/style The Totara. I got the name out my Encyclopedia of Trees Book. I was on the Patagonia website the other day and saw that they have a leather boot for the fall called the Totara. They like trees too. I don’t mind sharing the name with them. In fact, I want that pair of boots.