Today I was back at it! I decided that my first Etsy listing
was going to be Humbug bags. Humbug bags
are cute little triangular pouches that have a corded handle and a zipper
closure. I made and sold 25 of them back
in 2008 at a craft fair. In 2008, I was
using an adorable elephant print fabric that I machine-quilted.
I kept one elephant Humbug bag for myself, and I have been
using it to store all of my Gameboy games and accessories since 2008! The bag
has held up nicely over the last six years, so I am confident that Humbug bags
are a reliable product to start with.
I wanted to make sure that my understanding of the pattern
had not rusted too badly since 2008. I decided that I should start by making
one single bag, so that if I encountered any logistical problems, I would only
have one bag’s worth of seams to rip out.
I was so glad that I made this decision as I somehow managed
to misunderstand the directions and ended up with a Humbug bag with a handle
sewn on the inside. Oops!
Fortunately, I was able to work out the kinks and produce
a cute sewing-themed Humbug bag.
I was then off to Jo-Ann fabrics to purchase 9 inch red
zippers to make more bags. While I was
in the store, purchasing my zippers for $2.19 each, a woman suggested that I
look into a company called Newark Dressmaker Supply. Apparently, they sell
sewing supplies, including zippers, at wholesale prices. I was grateful for this tip and happy to be
reminded of how many friendly fellow-crafters there are out in the world! Upon
returning home, I requested a catalog from Newark Dressmaker Supply. I will
update this blog with my experiences using them as soon as I order something
from them.
I was able to use the zippers to make 3 more bags and then call
it a day.
So it looks like my next challenges will be creating product
photography, listing the items on Etsy, and figuring out how to estimate shipping
costs. I guess tomorrow will be a busy Etsy day!
Feel free to check out my Etsy shop and all of the cat-themed things that I have favorited at www.etsy.com/people/PearTreeStitches
