It's really feeling like FALL!

I'm so excited that today finally feels like fall! Even though it's raining like crazy outside, I am welcoming the cooler temperatures with open arms. The many many days of 90 + degrees this summer were really getting old. Yesterday I broke out the hot tea, socks, and long sleeves! I even started thinking about my flannel shirts that I had packed up for summer. I think today I will create a few items with a fall feel to them. Leaves are a favorite of mine and I hope to work them into some upcoming designs!

I am really loving dyeing my own fabric. I love the freedom to create all sorts of new colors that I longed for. I still have some organic cotton fabric that I bought pre-dyed. All of the organic cotton fabric I have has been manufactured in the USA. I feel that it's really important to know where your fabric is coming from and that those who made it were not harmed or paid unfairly in the process. I've been researching more about fair trade fabric and where I can get it. This has not been an easy task! Maybe I'm not very trusting, but unless it is fair trade certified or made in the USA I tend to stay away. Is all fabric made in the USA fair trade? Hmm...this is something I wonder about too. Any thoughts?

Long Time No See!

It's been way too long since my last post!!! Our summer got really busy and went by faster than the speed of light! Now that it's over, I've been overwhelmed trying to get items ready for our first craft show this weekend. Trying to balance working about 30 hours at my day job and then coming home and trying to build my Etsy business has become quite difficult. I so long for the day I can just focus on my Etsy shop and forget the long early morning commute to my day job and then the tired evenings of sewing and trying to promote my shop. I'm not giving up though, just venting : P

I have dabbled in dying fabric in buckets before, but in our little bathroom, it was a huge mess! I now have transformed our laundry room into a place to dye fabric with fiber reactive dyes and I LOVE it! Organic fabric color choices are quite limited and the ability to create my own colors has been so exciting! The process wasn't nearly as intimidating as I had anticipated. YAY!

I have included a couple of pictures of my transformed work areas and a few of the new colors, which I will be adding to my Etsy collection soon.

I must be thinking about Fall

This weekend I got an urge to use my sweatshirt fleece. Ironically, it's been near 100 degrees here and nobody needs a jacket! Thankfully we finally got rain, which cooled things down a bit. We may experience some cooler evenings at some point. I made two jackets this weekend and I was pretty happy with how they turned out. I am taking one to the beach with me in case we have a cool evening.

Leaves and Trees

I am loving applique and linen right now! I go through different stages. Sometimes knits are really appealing to me, sometimes sweatshirt fleece, but right now linen is it! I love sewing linen because it's much easier to sew than knits (for me anyway). I've been doing a lot more applique lately. I've hit a wall when coming up with designs though. Any suggestions? I've been stuck on leaves and trees. I need to take more walks outside to get inspired. Two of my recent Etsy listings reflect my new love for linen and applique. One is a pink tank top with a leaf and stem design on the bottom. The 2nd is a linen tank with buttons along the left side. I'm trying to come up with some new unique designs while we're slow at my day job, (shhh...don't tell the boss) :) but while the cat's away, this mouse does design!

Tilling Ticks Tanks

This last couple weeks have been really busy!! My husband and I have be working on our yard and our garden which consumes most of our time in the evening, especially mine when he has class two nights a week. I love the warmer months and the longer daylight. I forgot about all the bugs though :( booo. The ticks have been especially bad this spring! My mom just found out she has Lyme disease from a tick she recently found on her. Thankfully she caught it early! So I've been constantly checking for ticks and trying to find natural yard repellents and bug spray! YUCK

   This has left me little time to sew on week nights, but this weekend I should get caught up (maybe). The fabric I need to iron seems to be piling up. I've been working on some cotton plaid tank tops and soon I'll be listing a couple knit tops on Etsy.

Spring Has Sprung!

I've really been excited about spring this year! I love the colors and the fact that the snow is gone and I can see the ground! I should mention that I'm in western Virginia and we don't get a ton of snow usually. However, this year our ground was covered most of the winter. We had at least 2 very significant snow falls (2 feet) which is so rare for us.

This month, my husband and I noticed two flowering trees in our yard which we hadn't noticed before! We're thinking they are either apple or cherry, but we must consult a tree identification book to be sure. All of the new colors around our yard have made me ready to start sewing in some new colors and fabrics too. I've recently become a big fan of linen and hemp/cotton material. My newest additions to Etsy are a purple hemp tank and a linen tank. I'm working on a couple more top designs which should be posted by the end of the week!

Seasons of the Valley on Etsy!

Hello! This is my umm...3rd attempt at blogging. I tend to start and then get busy and forget I even have a blog. Whoops!

Thank you for visiting my site and if you've visited my Etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/seasonsofthevalley thank you X 2! I really enjoy sewing and posting items on Etsy. If you're not familiar with my shop, I should explain that I have a variety of handmade clothing items, including some made from eco-friendly and recycled fabrics. I also have several vintage items (clothing and housewares).
About me:
My Etsy shop is not my day job, unfortunately. I work full time at our family land surveying business. My day usually goes like this: wake up around 5 or uhh...5:30 am (by the time I give into the alarm), my wonderful husband makes my lunch while I quickly get ready for the day, leave for the 45 minute drive at 6 AM, get to work 6:45, work work work til 2 or 4:30 depending on how the economy is that week :), then make the long trek home, make supper, BREATHE, clean up, SEW, watch tv, and go to bed. ok...that was my day in fast forward. Thankfully, I work 4 ten hour days so I have all day Friday to work on housework and Etsy!

My husband and I live in a very small town. We have a small greenhouse and big garden, which I'm excited about right now because the temperatures are rising! I love having fresh food that we grew ourselves. It's good to know where your food comes from and also save money! Gardening is hard work, but very rewarding.

In the coming days I hope to keep up with this blog unlike the ones I tried before. I want to keep those that come to my Etsy shop informed on what's going on with my shop and how my items are made!