Masks, Bowls and Gallery

I've been busy since my last blog post in mid-May!  The burgeoning mask demand has kept my friend Joyce and me sewing long hours to try and keep up with the orders... we're trying to get out at least 100 a week, and they are snatched up from the truck stops and mini-marts where her sales rep is getting orders for them.  I actually managed to take pictures of a couple of batches of my side orders, to send to those who ordered them, but for the most part, I've been really focused on getting them done and out the door!  Here are a couple of recent batches:

  

These are for a friend who has a hair salon, to give to her clients who are children

A batch for a new customer who loves tie-dye.

Another new customer, for herself and her hubby.

On another front, my friend Jana has been keeping me busy making my coiled fabric bowls that she has been using in her lovely gift baskets, and has been having brisk sales, so that's keeping my sewing machine humming between mask orders!

Want to see more?  Here are some links to her website where she has them listed:

https://www.littlecabinsoaps.com/product-page/bright-colors-basket 

https://www.littlecabinsoaps.com/product-page/GiftBasket

And then there is Arts Connection, which has been shut down since mid March.  We finally re-opened June 19th with about 20 artists offering their work.  The last time I was there, I totally forgot to bring my camera, so photos will be added to a future post.  

I don't know about you, but this is not how I thought I would be spending my time this year, but events drive our lives, and I have learned the importance of being flexible and adaptable, and always optimistic!  I know to a lot of folks, that may sound Pollyanna-ish, but it's who I am.  I am of the mind that life is too short to be walking around with a dark cloud hanging over my head... I am much more inclined to find the beauty and hope in every situation, so if you find that odd or crazy, so be it!  I'm having fun, staying busy and avoiding all the negativity that seems to permeate so many areas these days!  

I will leave you with this meme, which made me belly-laugh when I saw it .  I hope it brings a smile to your face and a laugh from deep inside!

Happy Independence Day, and stay safe!

Mask Mania and more!

Well, my last post gave you a clue what I had been doing, but I had no idea it would parlay into a huge, going concern!  My friend Joyce sews professionally, creating a wide variety of products that are sold in gift shops throughout the southwest.  She even has a sales rep who visits the shops and sends her orders for products!  Well, with the Covid-19 shutdown, the gift shops closed down, and she had a brief -- very brief -- respite before the deluge of orders for masks started to come in.  Truck stops, gas station mini-marts... suddenly she was getting so many orders that she asked if  I could give her a hand, and that was many, M A N Y masks ago!  One busy Saturday I was in the middle of cranking out masks, and wanted to change needles, only I couldn't get the new needle to stay in.  I have had this problem before, but this time I couldn't overcome it.  The machine went into the shop, and I ended up buying another one on sale and had it up and running within minutes of arriving home.

It's very similar to my old machine, but 12 years newer!  

I have lost count of how many masks I have made since early March, but it's been a lot, and I don't see any end in sight!

I did take a brief break last week to make a couple of coiled fabric bowls.  A friend of mine, Jana, is a soap maker and we are collaborating on gift baskets.  She wanted a couple that could be suitable as a Fathers' Day gift, so I came up with these two:

This one is made of hand dyed fabric

This is made from fabric I found in a thrift shop

And finally, we are starting to work towards re-opening the gallery next Month.  This is going to be a slow process!  Many of our artists are in the "at risk" age group and are reluctant to risk their health by coming to the gallery.  We have worked on guidelines to ensure the safety of both our artists and the shoppers who come in, but may only be open on weekends to start.  We do now have an e-commerce site : https://www.flagstaff-arts.org/the-arts-connection-online-gallery.html, and yes, I am one of the artists listing items for sale there.  That way, even folks outside the Flagstaff area can order items!  So please check it out.  So far we have 10 artists offering work on the site, and we hope to have more joining us soon, so bookmark the link!

Okay, time to go back to work, and I hope you are all staying safe and enjoying Spring!

What a difference a month makes!

In one short month, everyone's world turned upside down!  Our daily routines, our plans, goals, intentions... disappeared as if a hidden magician waved his magic wand and we were left gasping in amazement, fear, uncertainty and grave concern.
In my last post, one of the things I shared about was the Artists' Coalition of Flagstaff's annual Recycled Art Exhibit which opened the March 6th.

I was unable to attend this year because of back issues, but it turned out to be a good opening, with several sales.  Sadly, we were forced to close the Exhibit and the Gallery a couple of weeks later due to concerns about the Covid-19 virus.  The artwork is still in the gallery, but the Flagstaff Mall also closed last week, and we have no idea when it will re-open.  Everything is on hold, businesses are closed, people are trying to figure out what to do while social distancing or self quarantining.

For me, that part hasn't been too hard - first off, I'm home a great deal of the time anyway, since I'm retired.  But I'm also usually busy creating inventory in my studio.  But I have an overabundance of inventory right now, so instead, decided to join the growing ranks of sewists who have begun to sew face masks to be distributed to medical centers, first responders, or even friends and family so we can wear them while out to protect ourselves and those we come in contact with!

I saw a youtube video today about wearing masks, from a citizen of the Czech Republic:

Click HERE to view it

I know there is some controversy about whether it is beneficial to wear masks while out to shop, go to doctor appointments, etc, but I'm one who likes to err on the side of caution, especially when it comes to something that could seriously impact my health or that of my husband or friends, so I tried wearing a mask to the store yesterday, along with some latex gloves that I have used and washed.  I am happy that I tried, and now have both items laundered and in a ziplock bag in my purse for future trips out.  If you sew, I hope you will try these... there are a number of patterns and variations available on-line if you google facemask pattern.  I made the ones above for a friend who is flying to another state to be with family as one of her sisters is seriously ill, so hopefully these will protect her and her husband during the trip.

To all my friends and those who read this, please stay safe, and keep your friends and family safe too!  We will get through this! 💗