TOMS - One for One

At first, I thought TOMS was just a gimmick to make white middle-class consumers feel good about buying an over-priced pair of shoes...  But that was before I read about the creator of TOMS, Blake Mycoskie.  He's an amazing person, and I was so impressed by him that I read his book, "Start Something That Matters."  The book explains Blake's business model, which somewhat improves the "evils" of capitalism.  His story made me inspired to do my own charitable business kind of thing--I re-opened my Etsy shop and decided to donate 50% of the sale price of each item to my chosen organization.

Generate Hope is the organization that I chose because it's based in San Diego and it helps women who are victims of sex-trafficking, which is a cause I'm passionate about.  I feel like, now knowing what the abused women go through, how could I not help prostitutes?  It's something that pulls at my heart.

It's more common than you think.

Now, I want to write a letter to Blake and buy TOMS for everyone I know.  I want to spread his story to all who will listen!  I would even love to work for TOMS, but I don't know what the chances of that are...  What I am going to do is organize a "One Day Without Shoes" group to promote his compassionate message.

http://www.onedaywithoutshoes.com/photowall

All I need now is my own pair...  Luckily, I dug up a Nordstrom's gift card that I had been saving for something special.  My TOMS will arrive in the mail any day!

I Made It - Painted Tennies

 Back from a creative hiatus!  (My absence was caused by the myriad other projects I have.)

Very simple diy:  There was a pair of white tennies hiding in my closet because I had spilled wax on them (don't ask...).  Perhaps you can see the slight discoloration on the toe?  Like many other crafters (and broke former college students) I couldn't just throw away a perfectly wearable pair of shoes.  Finally, I brought them out, dug up some turquoise acrylic paint from my disastrous supply closet, and went to work.  I had to use one of those makeup sponges because I didn't even have a damn paintbrush, but it worked out really well.  For the stripes, I used regular old scotch tape.
This is where I got my inspiration:

TOMS!

And a tutorial I once saw that is very similar to this one:

Stripes + Sequins's SaturDIY Neon Stripe TOMS

What really pushed me to get creative yesterday was this Lifehacker.com article:  How I Feel Satisfied With Every Day.  The author's simple guide to happiness is to do 3 things every day: make money, get fit & make something cool.  I already knew I needed to do those things, but the article reminded me of why--to be happy!

DIY T-Shirt Transformation

I got this awesome Dick Dale tee when I went to his show at The Belly Up [in San Diego] last year.  It says "Dick Dale for President", which makes me smile.  Here's a pic of me and The King of Surf Guitar:

 

 Here's the transformed tee:

 

I'm really happy with how it turned out.  I used this tutorial from fellow Etsy-seller Lex's website, WhatTheCraft.com.  As I've mentioned before, Lex has many easy written tutorials, and has even made some videos recently.  She's a great teacher!  [I pretty much idolize her and I hope she doesn't find it creepy!]  I love taking a simple, soft tee and turning it into something of my own.  

Attack of the Craft!

As you may have guessed, I have just joined Attack of the Craft.  I am trying to get to know some crafty people whose stuff I like, since I don't know many in real life...  I am excited because I know it will help in promoting my Etsy shop, Heart Attack Couture.  I don't know how to make banners, or links, or do a lot of stuff that would make my biz a lot better, so maybe these people can help me.  Plus, they make really cute stuff!

For my logo I have finally come up with an idea and it looks something like this:

But I can't just steal this image from someone else, can I?  I didn't make it.  And how would I modify it to suit my needs?  I guess I will post about this when I find out the answer.

Job Hunting

Well, obviously I'm not going to become rich selling on Etsy and eBay any time soon, so now I'm looking for a job.  Oh yeah, my financial aid ran out, too.  Since my last disastrous job as a "cocktail waitress," I'm terrified of getting a real job where I have to dress nice and show up on time.  And I might even have to work in the morning--ugh!  I'm terrible at sales, so I figured that some kind of clerical job would be best for me. 

Searching for jobs is frustrating.  I browse Craigslist and Monster, sending my resume to all kinds of places, but I haven't heard anything yet.  I guess it just takes time...  My boyfriend is supporting me right now, which makes me feel kinda lame since I was raised with the idea that women are supposed to be independent. 

Progress

Goal-achieving has been bad, bad, bad.  I haven't sold anything in weeks, and I'm starting to think my stuff is really lame.  Worse, I can't buy new materials until I sell stuff because I just don't have the money.  I keep hoping that something of mine will end up on Regretsy for being so ridiculous--I don't care if they laugh at my stuff because it sells!  And it's actually pretty funny...

I'm Lazy

I haven't been sewing that much, haven't been listing things on Etsy or eBay...bad bad!  I've been kinda busy with school, but I've also been lazy!  Procrastinating!  So I made a plan a couple weeks ago for the month of May.  I outlined some goals for the entire month, and then broke them up into mini goals for each week.

May Goals:
-Make $200 on Etsy and eBay
-Create 5 garments
-List 10 items
-Write 1 blog per week
-Update Facebook fan page each week
-Make graph of profits
-Distribute 50 business cards

Things I've Accomplished So Far:
-Nothing

So I'm not doing good so far.  It's finals week at school, so that equals more procrastination related to studying.  Ugh, I get so frustrated with myself sometimes!  I think I don't have very much faith in myself...

New Camera!

Hooray, I finally have a good camera to take my pictures with.  My boyf traded an Xbox he fixed for it.  We tried it out at the Murder City Devils' show on April 29. 
Spencer

Me

 I love my new shoes!

Royal Blue latex/rubber sailor dress with white ruffles by Kaorimg

Royal Blue latex/rubber sailor dress with white ruffles by Kaorimg

This is an interesting take on the popular pinup style, which I happen to love. The latex breathes new life into a classic style.

Tiger Toy Mini SkirtNeon Yellow with Black by heartattackcouture

Tiger Toy Mini SkirtNeon Yellow with Black by heartattackcouture

"Out for the kill, stalking her prey/ The fortunate ones never get away/ They say it's all fair in love, but it's not true/ You'll be chasing her tail til the night is through." (Electrocute)

This mini skirt is made from cotton-rayon jersey, very light and soft to the touch. Bold black stripes are painted onto a neon yellow background. Because the fabric is so lightweight, I lined the skirt with the same material to avoid the notorious VPL. The exposed zipper is thick with plastic tracks and nylon/polyester edges. It is sewn on the outside of skirt for an edgy look, and can be worn front or back. Also adding to the edgy look is a raw, unhemmed bottom edge. (This is not sloppiness--the rest of the garment is well-sewn.)

I have plenty of this fabric and can make this skirt in any size at your request. The skirt pictured is about a medium or large, and would fit about a size 7. When worn at the hips, the skirt hits just below your bum and is form-fitting. If you would like a custom size, it would be helpful to convo me the measurements around your hips where you would like the skirt to sit, around your bum, and the length you would like.

Measurements:
hips--36 in (92.5 cm)
length--11 in (28 cm)

I recently put this up on Etsy. I would have to say that this is the one thing up for sale that I would most like to keep. I have a few yards of this fabric and plan on making various things out of it...definitely a tank top tunic, but not sure what else.

Etsy :: Honeycomb Mini-Dress Lavender Aqua Cream with Gold Belt M Unique

I sold another thing! 

Hello!

Here I will track my daily thinkings, which will mostly be about fashion and sewing. I am an aspiring Etsy seller, and I am hoping that a blog will help me get my name out there. Plus, I like telling people stuff whether or not they're actually listening--just nod and smile! ;D

I have been doing A LOT of blog reading lately: Susie Bubble, Charlotte Taylor, Tavi, The Stroque...and last night I discovered Antimony & Lace. This has to do with "goth and dark fashion," which I am inspired by. I also love the fact that, perhaps even just for practical reasons, a goth would make her own clothes. She probably can't find exactly what she wants in stores, or if she does, it's waaaaay out of her budget--so she gets creative and customizes her wardrobe with her own size and colors!

This, in turn, relates to one of the big reasons I love Etsy: people creating one-of-a-kind clothing, much like wearable art! I can't begin to wonder why I'm obsessed with fashion, sewing, crafts, etc...but I CAN talk about it all day.