So in chatting with Erin I solidified my new decision, and it suddenly was the most obvious thing in the world, to narrow my focus. I was still sad about letting go of my vision of Bonspiel as a complete haberdashery for girls, but I see that it's a necessary decision to make in this stage of the game, and once I have grown bigger I can reintroduce clothing. I have lots of great patterns!
As the day went on I felt more and more relieved, and freed up. Now I can put all my inspiration and energy into making ever more outrageously great leather bags, and be able to do more wholesale. I will feel less frustration and become richer, sleek and fat like a happy house cat. Well, maybe not fat. But I will have better hair, more free time to go hiking, and more space in my closet! My sex life will go through the roof! I can't believe I didn't think to do this before!! WHEW.
The other great thing about this decision is that I will finally have time to make Blythe clothing (and teeny leather bags). This way my urge to design clothes will be somewhat satisfied, on a miniature scale. I made a sheepskin shearling aviator hat and vest for her today that sold from my etsy shop within 2 hours of posting, that is exciting!
I will probably produce a few tried and true clothing designs (english riding hoodie, a-line skirt) but the pressure is definitely off. Here's a picture of a dress that got to the early production stage. I only have one each in small, medium and large! Hmm, I really should use up the fabric I bought, though. Perhaps there will be just a few more...
Even as a little girl, I was not interested in playing with dolls. I remember for my eighth birthday two of my "friends" gave me identical malibu barbies, with teeny sunglasses and tans. I don't know what happened to them, but I don't remember ever playing with them. And I wondered whether those girls really understood me...after all my most beloved toy was a rubber crocodile named Crocky, missing his lower jaw but still capable of being force fed whatever I wanted (he was hollow). Ha, I just remembered that I did have a few dolls I liked, they all had fuzzy hoods permanently on their heads. I think one of them was an eskimo, politically incorrect but damn cute. Maybe that explains why I am making hoodlike things for Blythe dolls, but it sure doesn't explain my sudden obsession with these anachronistic dolls. I suppose some embarassing biology, warped and twisted in my spinster mind, could explain it. I don't even like kids until they are able to talk rationally with me, and babies scare me! I think the appeal of the Blythe doll for me is that she can look like a child, or an adult, and she never looks sleazy. She has the cachet of exclusive yet worldwide fandom, which phenomenon is so encouraged by the communication avenues of the www.
I took this brief history from Wikipedia, enjoy!
Blythe (pronounced "blieth" or like the 'bli' sound in "blind") is a doll created in 1972 by designer Allison Katzman with the now-defunct U.S. toy company Kenner. Reportedly, she was modelled after drawings by Margaret Keane, similarly to many other dolls of the '60s and '70s. Her most distinctive and notable feature were eyes that changed color with the pull of a string attached to the back of her head. Due to a lack of interest, Blythe dolls were only sold for one year in the U.S. (produced in Hong Kong), during 1972.
In 2003 Blythe was the subject in a segment on the popular VH1 special, I Love the 70s, where she was said to look like either "Barbie with elephantiasis" or "Christina Ricci" among other things.
So, here in the first picture you see a little white desk that is sort of a catch-all for paperwork and bits of projects. Above it is an original painting by my sister Susan, she's a way better artist than me. Some kind of anatomically correct pantsless puppyclown holding hands with a mini martian. If you look closely, on the desk is an arrested development dvd that Erin lent me.
At the left is a giant red metal water bottle, must keep well hydrated when making design decisions! My work tables are covered with canvas for cutting out things and screenprinting on.
My two trusty sewing machines are at the ready; the one on the left is Captain Smith, who does all the leather stitching with special uberstrong thread.
That tall awkward looking table with the laptop on top is an amazing homemade light table donated to me by the man who used to live in the house, Shea. The whole surface glows milky white with fluorescent tubes inside, it has been a boon to my artmaking.
Note the beautiful treeness outside the windows--it's a mini oak forest.
The roll of toilet paper is very useful for cleaning up ink mishaps (among other things). My ink shelf teeters overhead. I custom mix all my own colors and they're getting further away from primary all the time.
Those are projects cut out and waiting to be sewn, in the white wire cubbies. Right now there are five big leather shoulder bags, ten multipasses (a folding clutch with a strap and lots of compartments, check it out on the home page), a bunch of boystyle wallets, minikilts, and butterfly tops.
There are a couple of finished bags hanging on the door as well as some cardboard bag patterns (I invent all my own bags and draft all my own patterns for bags and clothing).
This is a feature on Etsy.com, where any user can make a list of their favorite things. This one is aimed for a girl 8-11 years old, or a girly boy of the same age. If this one were on the Etsy site, you would be able to click and go check them out...okay stop reading now if you don't want to know anything about Bonspiel!
I have been replenishing my stock after the Great Nelson Buyout of 2007, (Global Underground, a really cool shop there in Nelson, bought everything!) and finally my etsy shop is filling up again, just in time for Christmas. I have a couple of new products-- the Multipass (a clutch that opens like a book with compartments galore) is there in burnt orange suede, and I am working on some corduroy pants with maltese crosses on the back pockets, still getting it together on the Spoot front (see below). I know this is an incomplete and kind of boring entry, but I have to go make more stuff!
I'm gearing up for fall, specifically back to school time, with some new designs and prints. Being a fashion designer is great for helping you not resent the change of the seasons. It's exciting to think about fall colors and heavier textures of fabrics, and getting to wear shoes is an interesting concept. I'm doing a little pleated mini skirt with 3-d patch pockets that cinch up with little leather straps, I will make them in different wool tartans I have found. Sort of English punk, vaguely kiltish. I have a new tee in early production, which features skinny bias tape ties at the front neck, and a plunging keyhole neckline. Pencil or makeup cases, long and skinny, are new for fall and I'm making the beloved English Riding Hoodie in a luxurious cotton/hemp fleece, hand dying it deep burgundy. I'm also in the process of refining my Spoots concept. Spoots are spats which go up to your knee, they look like boots only have no sole. You put them on over whatever footwear to get instant strange bootness. Only the sole and tip of the toe of the footwear will show. These spoots are definitely interesting, with seven or so big buttons up the side to do them up, made of leather and quite sleek and English riding boot-esque.
The most exciting news (other than the spoots) in my world lately is that I have my first employee, Erin! She comes to me from the place I used to work at, Smoking Lily, and I used to work with her there, so I know her to be of impeccable integrity in the sewing department, not to mention her wonderful freewheeling mind and supercreative abilities. She's a pleasure to have around, very productive, and I couldn't be happer! (I promise, I did not poach her from Lily, although I wanted to).
We spend our days together (only two of them a week, for now) whipping up garments and free associating about design concepts, whatever, while eating on the huge 1-pound dark belgian chocolate bar I always keep in my desk. We do try not to get chocolate on the products. Erin is a godsend, that crucial first employee for a tiny business. Three Cheers!!!!
Okay, now to gripe about the weather. The Sunday market has been really fun and even somewhat lucrative despite being cold/windy/rainy every sunday this summer but for two. Yesterday it was pouring when I got there, the whole time I was setting up my dome, and for another two hours as I sat in a coffee shop (Bean around the World on Fisgard, they are awesome) and nursed a latte and refused to go outside and put up my wares until the rain stopped. It did clear up enough to make it worth carrying on but I wore my damp down filled parka all day...sad! BUT: I am looking forward to doing Fiesta Siesta, a two-day craft market extravaganza up at UVic (the local university) the first Wednesday and Thursday of September. It is outdoors as well, but the students if anything are more likely to be on campus if it is raining!
The morning after the Fiesta Siesta, I'm grabbing my friend Angelica and we're driving to Nelson, BC, 8 hours into the interior of the province, to do a trunk and fashion show at our friends' shop there (this will be at Global Underground, on Saturday night). Ah, the whirlwind schedule of a fashionista! I can't wait to see girls modelling entire Bonspiel outfits, complete with spoots! Spoots, tartan mini, english riding hoodie. Oh yes. I'm looking forward to fall.
Oh, one more thing. The Penguin Books Australia publishing company has published a book called "Softies" featuring a bunch of handmade stuffed creatures, and my Russian Cosmonaut Devil is in it! He's even on the cover. He flew to Australia for a photo shoot, then he came home, and then I sold him. Yes I am heartless.
The book has the patterns and instructions to make the creatures, so you can learn a lot by checking it out. It's very cute, and I'm excited to be part of it.
What with building my market booth, making new and exciting things, and endless trips to the post office to mail many many packages to eager customers all over the world, I had all but forgotten about my darling little site!
But, I'm back. Let's see...what's happened since last I wrote? Well, my friend Joanne closed her shop in Market Square, Flight 167, suddenly. She has decided to pursue other passions. That square really needs some big local energy to transform it, as it is owned by a company in Vancouver who isn't interested in fostering Victoria's scene, and furthermore keeps hiking the rent by astronomical amounts. Fortunately, an interior design shop there, Bespoke, helmed by Heather Draper, has taken the bull by the horns and is aiming to establish an ongoing market of local handcrafts in the courtyard. It would be perfect, as it is a very interesting open but covered courtyard with a mezzanine all around. Go Heather!
My time at the Government Street market has been plagued by bad weather. It has been really unbelievable, we can have six days of hot sunny weather unbroken by a single cloud, and then I wake up on Sunday morning to cold drizzle and canopy-bending winds! ( see weather forecast below). My first canopy, bought especially for this market from a company in Abbotsford thru Ebay, was kind of budget, and its spindly metal frame was broken after six Sundays of relentless wind.
I decided to take those stupid lemons and make lemonade, by recycling parts of my canopy (the white water-almost-proof sides and top) into a new, handmade geodesic dome wonder! It's easier than it sounds--I already had some specialized metal hub pieces which position the wooden members in their triangular formation. It was just a matter of going to the lumber store and picking up some sticks, cutting them to length and drilling holes in the ends so they can be bolted to the plates. Then I sewed up a roof out of pink nylon taffeta with a fuzzy beige stripe, and walls from the white stuff. I also made a banner which flies proudly from the peak of the structure. It all goes together with wingnuts in under an hour. It has proven to be strong and stable, as well as charming and intriguing to the shoppers and other vendors. It looks like a pink frosted cupcake.
The most people that could fit in it at a time was six, but they were all tiny Japanese exchange students.
Briefly, the rest of the news: I now have my stuff in a couple of new shops, Sweet Something on Galiano Island, and Devil May Wear, on 21st at Main Street in Vancouver. I am making fanny packs, I love them! Sold one to someone in Slovenia. My brother Denny's band has set up a permanent rehearsal space in "the shiproom" in my basement, so we get sweet mellow ska sounds in the evenings. I may even get back to playing drums, now that there is a beautiful kit in my house. And I love seeing more of my brother. I'm getting ready to start making my fall line--it will include a collared dress, some big brown leather hobo bags, squirrel pillows (for your couch to wear), and some linen flounced skirts. Also, I will bring back the English Riding Hoodie. C'est tout! --ellen
It's spring and things are going crazy in the ol' Bonspiel realm. I've been getting sooooo many offers to carry my things from shops all over the world. I'm really quite overwhelmed and amazed that people like it so much! I toggle between wanting to say YES to everyone, and then freaking out that I won't be able to fulfill perfectly. I am happy to announce that a killer shop in Los Angeles, Zanzabelle, will be carrying my purses as soon as they get there in the mail. I couldn't believe the look of the place--it's my dream store. It looks like Mark Ryden dropped some acid and then opened a candy shop. How could I not participate? Check out the website here.
I'm barreling along, making as much stuff as I possibly can for my grand opening day of my booth at the Government Street Market on Sunday April 29. I'll be there every Sunday this summer, so if you're in Victoria, come say hi!
I've been making stuff like mad since I went full time at the beginning of this month. I spent two days drafting a pants pattern, complete with all the details you could want--belt loops, zip fly, front pockets and back patch pockets. And a squirrel on the leg, of course. I also made some white tops, very yoga instructor-esque, and some little handbags. Fun. And I had dinner with Steph and Angie last week; Steph pulled out her wallet and I noticed that it was amazing--classic style in glossy brown leather all reshaped and burnished from being in her pocket. She said she sewed it by hand in India, from some goatskin she got there. She learned to make shoes there too, taught by a dude who didn't really speak english. Hansel would be so proud!
I got so inspired by Steph and her wallet that I decided to make leather wallets! I churned out a dozen yesterday, and they are so functional and cute, with a tiny pocket for change, a card slot and a billfold area for your paper money. I will be putting them in my Etsy shop this afternoon.
A fellow etsy seller by the name of Mwahcreations (who makes hilarious stuff--check out her family of needle felted slobs ) offered me a llama skin out of the blue. She got it from a friend, well, from a friend's llama (which died a natural death) and since she doesn't work with leather, thought I might exploit it. Cool! How often do random strangers offer a girl a dead llama skin?? It's only happened two or three times in my life, I can tell ya. It's an extremely supple, yet thick yellow-tan skin with lots of strange textures around the edges. I think that llama may have had a skin condition of some kind. But the middle was really nice, and I made some passport sleeves out of it, and a wallet for Mwah.
I sold my first item (one of the llama passport sleeves!) to somebody in Austria the other day. I hope she doesn't get bratwurst grease and beer on it...or lose it in the alpine meadows. The hills are alive!
Closer to home, I got discovered by Amber, who has a retail shop on Galiano Island called Sweet Somethings Gallery, and she'll be carrying my things there this spring. She makes fabulous jewellery sought after by stars and famous people (like Destiny's Child, and Freddy Kreuger) so maybe a little of that stardust will rub off on me. I love the idea of a shop on Galiano; I grew up on Salt Spring Island, so little islands with amazing worldly people on them are par for the course.
We're settling in nicely to our fabulous new home. Right now I'm in front of a crackling oak fire, listening to The Shins, with an empty tequila glass in front of me. Monday Night! This is the first update I've written since before I moved, and I'm writing it on my brand new budget yet awesome notebook (a pc, yes I have gone back to the dark side...I love it). In case you don't know, I had my mac book stolen just before Christmas, with all my pictures and records and everything in it, not to mention that so cute movie of my dad playing the banjo. And, I was living in a tiny crapbox full of mold with no room to cut out garments. I had to make only tiny things! But, I have given notice at my job after 7 years of service, moved into a large and gracious home, and in less than two weeks I will be launching Bonspiel full time! That means handmade shirts, pants, skirts, jackets, more purses, Gnomes and Devils and anything else the hell I want. Just give me a few weeks to ramp up, I'll blow your socks off, I promise.
My Russian Cosmonaut Devil character has flown to Australia for a photo shoot--he is going to be immortalized in a Penguin Books publication called "Softies"--complete with a pattern and instructions on how to make him. So exciting--I'm pimping him out for some sweet coin. He doesn't mind, after all, he's a devil.
In other news, I have streamlined this here website. Since it is linked to my Etsy shop, there's no reason to have it laid out as a fully functional shopping site. So from now on, you will just get the home page with six newest items on it, that link to my Etsy shop. I have kept the other pages of interest, like the "about" page and the "links". 'cause you'd rather I made more stuff than mess around with a website.
