A Meditation in Earrings

I had some fun yesterday rephotographing accessories, and I thought I'd share! I enjoy taking the close-ups (of the clothing too) because you have to look at every little detail, and it forces you to take the time to consciously think about what you want to include in the frame. It's meditative in a way, the intentionality of it. These were all done in my back yard, on a quilted piece that I think my Granny or one of her sisters made, something that looks like a table runner. All the earrings are paired with little natural keepsakes that I have collected over the years.

On the Farm

In Barnardsville, NC, along the Family Farm Tour

I've been feeling inspired to paint a new garden animal for next summer. Still considering what it might turn out to be... a rabbit, perhaps. I already have the perfect pair of vintage overalls that I've been saving for such a creation. They have red, green, blue and yellow stitching and accents on the pockets - so perfect! Of course, I can think of a dozen or so little painted and collaged "accessories" of nature for the little critter - lettuce, beets, flowery dill, some unusual-looking varieties of heirloom squash...

I've been spending a lot of time lately in my and other people's gardens, enjoying the offerings of summer. My garden is coming along slowly. (The back yard is just too shady.) I have an infant cucumber about as big around and half the length of my pinky and a tiny green tomato. I think a rabbit or squirrel must have eaten the rest of the tomatoes, since they have disappeared. (I don't think my dog, Lola, is too tempted by food so healthy and prefers meat scraps and plate-lickings instead.) I'm still waiting on everything else to come in - peppers, summer and pattypan squash. And my fall plantings will go in the ground this week - lots of greens, onions, and some winter squash.

I spent last Friday morning back at Lineberger's fruit farm in Denver, NC, picking berries. We were right on the tail-end of the raspberry season; there were hardly enough for Paul's mom and I to pick a half-gallon each. Whoever came before us missed the hardest to reach fruit, so I found some full, ripe berries by crawling around underneath the bushes! We also picked blackberries, which went much quicker due to the size and amount of fruit. But I did discover that the bigger the berry, the sharper the thorns! I left scraped, dirty, dripping sweat, but very satisfied to have something tangible and useful from so much hard work. The berries have now been made into jam, with a few left over for muffins, pancakes, and midday snacks.

We saw a lot of these quilt-like panels adorning the sides of town buildings. I love the photo of this one, with the little bird perched on the rooftop.

This weekend Paul and I went to the mountains for a Family Farm Tour in and around Asheville. We were able to spend time on four different small farms. We had lunch at the first and toured the garden where they grow ingredients for homemade pesto, preserves, and blackberry wine. We visited two goat farms - one where they produce lots of delicious cheese (we picked up a chevre flavored with herbs de provence and learned to make our own ricotta), the other where a sweet older woman sheers the goats for mohair fiber. This was probably our favorite stop. We loved the curly-haired goats and watching the women spin the mohair into yarn to be knitted. All of the hand-created items she had for sale held a tag with a photo of the goat the fiber came from. Our last stop was a beautiful homestead alongside a natural spring with inventive methods for obtaining self-sufficiency. Aside from a bounteous garden and winter greenhouse, the couple also had a beehive and shiitake and oyster mushroom logs (so interesting!). We learned so many handy tips from the kind husband who gave us the tour.

I better get to the sketch pad soon, while this feeling of summer is still fresh and green!

At Spinning Spider Creamery, the goat dairy farm. 

This little goat thought my dress was pretty tasty!

The mohair goats at Good Fibrations farm.

Spinning! And look at that lovely afghan in the background!

little boxes

Oh my. Lately I feel like I have spent more time in front of the computer than in front of a piece of clothing, sewing. I could spend an entire day just doing research - looking up craft fairs and local festivals, discovering fashion blogs, submitting files to get clothing featured at other boutiques, chatting with fellow Etsians for tips on selling, writing bios (long ones and short ones) and various forms of descriptions of Verabelle. I have discovered lots of fun and interesting things, though, with all of these long hours looking into the glowing rectangle. Here are a few things to look at:

Shoes made from recycled paper!

Stitching kits

Tips on thrifting

There has also been much time spent behind the camera. I shot 3 new pieces last week, and this week 2 more are scheduled. So keep checking in on Etsy as more things continue to be posted! This week's photo shoot will be in Greenville, SC, my first outside my Charlotte hometown. I'm going to visit my friend Sarah and I happen to have some things that fit her perfectly! In fact, she'll be modeling a reconstructed dress that she found at the thrift store, herself, and then passed down to me. It's a cute pink and grey number that now features Sophie the Squirrel.

Ok, I'm off! Got to submit an application for a craft fair in D.C. for this October! I promise I'll have something more interesting next time. :)

Storque brings good news

Odetta's Tangerine Top was recently featured in The Storque, Etsy's blog. The post discussed the rise in sells and new members on Etsy in the month of May. This increased my views for this item significantly. A little victory for Verabelle!

P.S. matching lunch in the hood

One more tidbit from this past week. Intern heather and I stopped by Common Market to grab lunch last week, and wouldn't you know it, we each picked out chips and soda that matched! HA! Only us...
Heather's blue & green is on the left (ginger beer & sour cream and creole onion chips) and my purple and teal in on the left (raspberry ginger beer and salt & vinegar chips). If only our outfits had matched too...

one flew the nest!

Oh goodness, where do I even start?! I have gotten a little behind on updates, because there has been so much I haven't had time to sit down! Things are finally up and running on Etsy. I got everything posted to the site two nights ago, so it hasn't been long enough to judge how it's going yet. However, there have been some other users who've added me as their favorite and one who has included me in their treasury. (If you use Etsy, you'll know what I'm talking about.) It's so nice to have everything on there - all the photos uploaded, all the clothing descriptions written, all the items priced, all the text typed in. It was definitely an accomplishment! The only thing that remains is my custom banner, which should be coming this week.

The biggest, most measurable achievement, though (and the one that still has a cloud of excitement around it) has been selling two pieces of clothing to Boris and Natasha, an upscale, reputable clothing boutique in Charlotte's Plaza-Midwood. Last week, Heather and I packed up a suitcase (green vintage, grabbed last minute from the thrift store) with all of the finished pieces and toted everything to the owner, Hope. Heather had already stopped by wearing the tangerine Odetta the Owl sweater to see what we needed to do to get Inhabit in the shop. Hope loved the top and said to bring everything in right away!

When we left Boris and Natasha, two tops were tagged, marked with a price, and hanging to be sold. It felt like I was leaving two of my children behind at summer camp, and I thought about them alone there all night. "Sophie's Weekend Blouse" is still hanging in the store (at least it was Saturday when I went back to visit), but "Sophie's Button Collection Tank" found a new home less than 24 hours after I left her!

Hope, owner of Boris & Natasha, wearing "Sophie's Button Collection Tank," my first sold piece! 

It went great with the flash of pink in her hair!

Other than me still reeling from my first sale, a lot of other good things came from this visit to Boris and Natasha. Hope gave me lots of tips for what sells best in her store, so I'll know what to bring next time. (She wants to keep featuring pieces from Verabelle!) We also learned that our pricing was on target, which was a relief. And we discussed some publicity ideas, as well (don't want to spoil any surprises yet, but I'll keep you updated!).

Today, Heather and I had a meeting with the Small Business Association for a representative to review our business plan draft for a small business loan. We're not quite ready to approach the banks yet, but now we know what we have left to work on. That felt like another big thing taken care of. It was also really great to see someone very outside our realm (and target market) respond well to my business idea and all its phases. In fact, I could sense his excitement gaining the more he learned!

So instead of being at the brink as I was before, now things are running, maintaining... as in... we're in business! We've hit a small lull as these big tasks have been completed and, for now, I'm back to designing, sewing, and finally... sleeping! But plateaus are also a good place to regain speed, and that is also what we're doing - preparing for the next big step.... T-shirts!

Shop girl, Amy, modeling "Sophie's Weekend Blouse." I didn't have time to get photos of models in either of these pieces before they were sold, so this is the only chance you'll have to see them!

A shot of the acorn on the shoulder. I really do love my choice of stitching for this one!

There's little Sophie, hanging out with her new friends! Stop by and say "hello," and tell her that her mommy misses her!