Browsing Tag

Ohhh Lulu

What I’m working on now…

Uncategorized April 30, 2011

So I ended my stint at the mechanics shop on Thursday, around noon. While I’d like to say I’m sad to be closing this chapter in my life… I’m not. I am so happy to never have to go back there again! While I’m happy to know a little more about cars, and am very proud of myself for persevering through it, I’m so very glad it’s over! I am excited to start my new job on Monday morning.

So, between yesterday and today, between grocery shopping trips, making dinner, and cleaning, I made two bathing suits. The first, a pink floral frilly number, and the second a goldenrod malliot (which is my favourite, and I will keep the sample for myself).

I purchased several yards of spandex on line, and it arrived within days! I’ve been wanting to delve into swim wear for a while now. I’ve always had a hard time finding bathing suits I am comfortable in. While I am petite, I’ve got an ample chest, and curvy hips and I feel like I should be on Baywatch or in some sleazy magazine whenever I put on a bikini… not to mention the discomfort of constantly having to make sure your bosom is still covered by the little fabric triangles…
I’m thinking these will be much more my style… besides, if you ask me, a little modesty is very, very sexy.

Besides swimsuits, I’ve been working on another soft bra, and filling orders. Last week I got a ton of orders that I am trying to get finished up before starting my new job.

For now… I have a headache. Time to curl up on the couch and enjoy some relaxation time!
And remember, tomorrow I draw for the Give Away winner!

Official Give Away Post!

Uncategorized April 24, 2011

It seems my Ruffle Bloomers are the most sought after panties I make… so, I am giving a pair away! These normally sell for $30-$40 in my Etsy Shop, but you get a chance to win a pair, in your size for free, free, free!


The ruffle bloomer panties will be made in your choice of small (32-34″ hip), medium (35-37″ hip), or large (38-40″ hip).

Comment on this post for your chance to win! I will run the contest from today, Sunday, April 24, and close a week later, on Sunday, May 1st.
Here is the one catch… I am keeping the fabric choice top-secret! But, I promise, they will be lovely.

Remember, you are not winning the panties shown above, but brand new, top secret, FBI cover-up, never seen before Ruffle Bloomer!

Comment here with your name and email address, I will do a random number draw after closing next Sunday. Good luck to everyone!

Thanks to everyone for celebrating all my ups and downs with me and cheering me on along the way!

EDIT: I will ship this anywhere in the world!

Long, Productive Day.

Uncategorized April 21, 2011

Ok, I am finally winding down for the day. I think I sewed for 12 hours straight, with breaks here and there to take Oliver out for pee-breaks. When I have my sewing marathon, little Oliver always perches himself on the back of the couch and watches, snoring and snorting and sneezing and making weird pug noises. Gosh I love that dog!


I finished off two custom orders, both bra and panties sets. The lace ruffle one is my favourite. I just love frothy, gathered lace! The sad part of today though is…

I am completely out of the Swiss dot for the black set, and only have enough floral fabric for one last pair of ruffled lace panties… and hopefully I can source the same lace again because I used all of it today too!
In better news, my bridesmaids dresses arrived today! We will pick them up on Wednesday and I will do any alterations that the girls might need. I really hope my dress comes in soon, as I would like to start on alterations – which I will pay an actual alterations seamstress to do!
I have one more week at my job before I start my new PR position. I am looking forward to a Monday to Friday 9-5 job again, with no worry about overtime. It will be so nice to be able to come home, and have time to cook dinner. No more 11 hour days!
Lastly, I think Dan and I are going to buy a new car. I’ve never spoken about our car before… but it has a lot of character, being a mechanics car. All of the electronic devices hang by wires out of the doors (auto-locks and windows, etc), the back doors have no interior handles because we had to put them on the front, when they broke, the heat is operated by reaching underneath the passenger side dash… Yep, it’s got a lot of character! Here’s hoping we can get this new car before summer road trip season, which will start with a drive to Quebec in June.

Two New Sets!

Uncategorized April 21, 2011

I found a seersucker plaid that, I swear, is exactly the same fabric that I had a shirt made out of when I was just a kid. I wore that shirt to the Oro Worlds Fair (yes, an honest to goodness Worlds fair), in the parade that kicked off the ceremonies. I love that shirt. I still remember, my mom tied a ribbon in my hair that day!

I added little navy floral ruffles to the hip (I don’t think I can sew anything without a ruffle), and navy floral flaps to the bra.
I think it turned out really cute, and it totally reminds me of a country fair. Speaking of which, I must make an effort to go to the Oro Worlds Fair this year! I am thinking about lining the bottoms and making the sample into a swimsuit for myself. I lined the cups in super-soft jersey so the bra could be worn alone.

I have also been eyeing this fabric for a while now… It is soft, gauzy, and the perfect shades of blue with an accent of red. I should have bought more because I would really like to make a summery dress out of it. It is light as air!
I added little tiny blue bows to the hip, at the side seam. I used the prettiest fold-over elastic. I like to use fold-over elastic the best, but find it hard to source locally. It finishes so much nicer. This one in particular has a picot edge, and a little bit of iridescent glitter – it completes the sea side look.
I’ve listed these in my Etsy shop at separates and a set! The serger is making my life so much easier, I’m not sure how I ever survived without it. I can sew a set so much faster than I could before.

Busy as a Bee

Uncategorized April 7, 2011

I have been so busy lately! Filling orders, photographing and listing new items. This one is my favourite.

I listed my first item on the Sense of Fashion website. I will need to add more over there, but one item is at least, a start.
Dan and I have made awesome wedding headway, finalizaing the guestlist, and planning out our big day. I can hardly believe it is 5 months away! The time is flying by so fast, but not fast enough! I am really excited about the wedding and all the fun things to come after.

Blog Love

Uncategorized April 2, 2011

I wanted to share a few blogs that featured some of my work. The first is Simply Colette , she included a really nice little write up about what I do, which really made my day! Secondly is, Prairie Seed, which featured one of my photos. Their blog is absolutely stunning, simple and elegant! I’ve spent some time this morning drooling over their blog! I was also over at PetalHandmade. Looking at her kids clothes makes me want to have kids even more! So cute! I can’t wait til Dan and I have little ones to dress.

Lastly, I love this treasury, and I wanted to share it with you.

Sunday night depression…

Uncategorized March 27, 2011

Ah, back to work tomorrow after a lovely day off. I do love my Sundays.

This morning I managed to sew a new take on my ruffled bloomers. I’ll have pictures to post later on in the week (the battery in my camera is dead!). My goal for this week is to sew a whole whack of ready-made ruffle bloomers to list on Etsy. I’m also going to try my luck at Sense of Fashion – as Marie at A Sewing Odyssey commented, “Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained” – This is something I need to live by more! I am also going to try to get more into some stores around this area. I live in a small town with a very vibrant summer-time waterfront, and a lot of cottagers. I have a feeling my items would really fit in with that niche. I am definitely going to try to take more chances over the next few months.
Lastly, I got a great little mention on Hopeless Lingerie’s Facebook Page. That sure was a surprise! Such a nice thing to find at the end of my Sunday. I’ve always loved their stuff.
Well… I suppose I should be off. I’m so sad to see this Sunday come to an end… It really was a great one; running in circles in the parking lot with Oliver, shopping with my Mom, sewing in front of a sun-filled window, a whole-whack load of great treasuries (I even made two) and now to curl up on the couch…

Ready to Ship!

Uncategorized March 23, 2011

I finished all but 1 outstanding orders today, packaged them up and shipped them out. Aren’t they pretty? I try to make the package as cute as what’s in it.

I feel a lot better now that I am caught up, I can try to relax a little… And think about new things to make. I really want to do a batch of ruffle bloomers to list post. I also stumbled upon a site called Sense of Fashion, which apparently is a new marketplace for independant designers and boutique owners. I signed up but haven’t listed anything yet. I think I would only do Ready Made over there. Anyone ever heard of this site? I’d love to hear more about it. I’d like more venues than Etsy to sell.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Ohhh Lulu and how happy I am with how its doing, with very little promotion, besides this blog and a twitter account. It made me think… what would happen if I advertised? Or maybe rented a booth in the local (and bustling) farmers market? Maybe the dreams of quitting my day job might become a reality?
Day job is becoming increasingly frustrating. I tried to give it a go, and start some new procedures, but everything is just backfiring. I am giving up, quite grumpily so. Dan’s apprenticeship completion is going slower than we expected, which means his raise keeps getting put off… which is frustrating us both. He so deserves it after all of his hard work!
In the good news department, I placed another gigantic order at Lush. I bought a bunch of stuff I’ve never tried before, including one of their face cleansers, masks, and scrubs. I highly recommend to anyone with dry, itchy skin to try their Body Butters and Massage Bars. I bought the Manage Too bar last time, and it is so rich and creamy and absorbs fast. My skin is so soft, and I smell good enough to eat! I highly, highly recommend the stuff. I can’t wait until my order arrives! It can never come fast enough.
I also purchased a custom made stamp off Etsy for the wedding. Dan and I are planning on sewing a million muslin bags for birdseed to toss at the wedding. We are going to stamp each one with our name and date of wedding. We’ll likely also use it on our favours (jars of marmalade!), and programs. We have the cutest picture that Dan’s niece drew of us “marrying” which we also hope to incorporate into the program. I am getting so many fun, DIY ideas for the wedding! Gotta get the glue guns going soon!

Wednesdays sew-a-thon

Uncategorized March 16, 2011
So, I didn’t finish up everything that I wanted to get done today, as always, but I did make a really pretty pair of panties.

I really love a good floral, and this one is quite nice… soft pink with rose and purple, looks great with black. I just happened to have some pink and black lace in my stash that I’ve been hoarding for years, not knowing what to do with it. It was wide lace, so I cut it in half, lengthwise, and ruffled it. I also added it in as a in-set appliqué.

I made another pair for my “everyday” collection, similar to my other Lace and Cotton Everyday Panties, but with slightly-gathered lace over the hips and two small bows. These ones are my testers!

And lastly, another ruffle bloomer, with ruffled crochet cotton lace and three grey, plastic vintage buttons. My camera was dying and the photo didn’t turn out so good…
I went to the park this morning with my cousin and her two little ones. I am so happy the weather is getting nicer. It was so fun to push the kids on the swings and to walk along the boardwalk…

Two in a week… I must have done something good…

Uncategorized March 12, 2011

This week several great things have happened to me. Let me first start of by saying that Thursday was a terrible, stressful day, but my dear Dan showed his true colours by pulling through honourably as always. We ended a terrible day with a feat of good Samaritan-ship and now the universe is paying back with all kinds of good fortune.

1. I lost a very important key the day my dad had his heart attack… my key ring was loose and keys flew everywhere in my haste to get home… Yesterday Dan found it sitting in a melting snow bank.

2. A treasury I made was on the front page this morning!

3. My item was featured on the front page.

4. I no longer need to wear a ratty uniform shirt to work and am now free to choose my OWN clothes like a grown up!

So, as a whole, it has been a fantastic couple of days, after some very, very stressful times.

I work a short shift today, then am looking forward to a day off with Dan. We finished up our registry on Wednesday and got some fantastic stuff. This weekend I might try to start crafting some decorations… or just play video games, not sure which way I’ll go yet!