A trio of purses

A short while ago I received an email from someone who had purchased one of my little purses through my Etsy shop . . . with an inquiry about whether I might be interested in creating a purse for each of three of her friends . . . to remind them of the costumes they wore to a masquerade recently.

I was sent photos of each of the costumes and given complete freedom to create . . . what fun! You can click on the photos to see more detail of the purses.

Here are photos of the costumes (with permission) and the bags that I created, as well as the costume and the bag that I made for the customer initially (I didn't know it was to go with a particular dress.) The costume photos are a bit small but I think you will see enough to know where the inspiration came from.

The first purse was made for the "ice witch". The purse is made of black and white dupioni silk that is pieced in a soft curve and is beaded in black and white . . . with a few of the black beads drifting into the white and a few of the white beads drifting into the black. The strap is also both black and white and it is lined with charcoal cotton.












The second purse was made for this costume that I initially had a bit of trouble identifying . . . but we referred to her as an "owl person" as her costume included a beautiful cascade of feathers down the back as well as around her neck and she had an owl perched on her shoulder. The bag is constructed of brown silk noile and has a little black tulle ruffle at the bottom of the flap which echoes the ruffle beneath the hem of her dress. The purse is stitched to look like a tree trunk and has "moss" and "fir boughs" made of thread lace that I constructed separately and then added. There are a few feathers tucked secured under the branches and a smooth polished stone weighs the flap closed.












The third purse was made for this "princess". I was concerned about matching the colour of her dress so I was delighted when my customer was able to obtain a piece of the fabric that it was made from (the photo of the purse was taken indoors and the colour appears different from the dress -- but it is the same!). The flap on the purse has been made in the same shape as the top of the dress and beaded to invoke memories of this beautiful gown. It is lined with silver dupioni silk.













The final costume is my delightful customer who commissioned these purses and her purse, which was made for her a couple of months before the other three. All she told me at the time was that she would like to have a purse that was black with silver stitching . . . the one I made is constructed of black dupioni silk and the swirls are metallic silver thread as are the beads. The beads on the lower edge of the flap help to weigh it closed. There are also more beads on the back of the purse.

Liturgical stole for Sorrento Centre

This summer I created a stole for Sorrento Centre that co-ordinates with the banner that Val and I made for them three years ago.

The stole depicts the beach, lake, mountains, and sky that are so much a part of Sorrento Centre and the cross hanging in St. Francis Chapel is at the back of the neck.

Wristlet key fobs

It seemed like it might be a good idea for me to have a few low-priced items on my table at the local craft sales so I have made some of these fun little wristlet key fobs. They are a popular item online and I have not seen any around here so have made up a few to try out at this week's sale. Most people make them with ribbon on a webbing base but I have made mine with fabric of course and, some are on a webbing base and some are fabric-wrapped Timtex with another piece of fabric sewn on top. One of them is a pieced strap (I like it best, of course, but it takes longer to make those. . .) and if I have time I will make a few that are truly fibre art.

The wristlet part is about 10" long and slips over your wrist but fits securely enough that you won't drop your keys. I have made a few that are a bit larger as well because I think that people with larger hands would need a bigger one. The hardware clamps onto the wristlet and has a split key ring. These are great for putting into your purse, too, because the wristlet has a distinctive shape so you can find your keys easily.

I have a bit of a concern about selling something like this when my table is, otherwise, just my fibre art purses, cards and landscapes. I don't want people to think that I'm going "bazaar-like" because that's not my intent. But, I'll take the chance this week and see what the reaction is . . . if I don't sell any of the fibre art I'll have to reassess:) Let me know what you think . . .

Pre-Christmas Sales

I'm getting ready to do a couple of local pre-Christmas sales and the first one is tomorrow at the Cedar Centre just down the road. I will be selling my little purses as well as greeting cards and landscapes. I will also do another craft sale next Saturday in Sorrento.

Norm made me a great "tree" on which to display my purses and I think it should work well. It is made from dowels and I have washed it with a dark blue paint so that it still shows the wood but blends in with the dark blue table covers that I use. I have eighteen purses ready and they should all fit on the tree.

Here's a pic of the bed in the spare room . . . the gathering place for everything. I am very fortunate that my stock is easy to transport and set up . . . I look at some people who have very bulky and/or heavy items and I'm glad that mine is easier to move about.

The landscapes are a bit more difficult to display but I use an easel with a ceiling tile that is covered with flannelette to hold a couple of them and others go in seagrass baskets on the tabletop.