Seamstress in a RTW World…

I have the best of intentions, really, but I totally suck at blogging.  This is my second blog, the first of which I put to bed well after it’s time.  This one would probably suffer the same fate if it weren’t attached to my storefront, in which case I’m too lazy to remove it and it’s links…  So the better alternative is just to use it.  Or at least I resolve again to try to do so…

So much has happened in the last 13 months since I last posted, it’s little use to try to catch you up.  Save one small thing.  Or rather one small person.

Ellory Quinn, born 12/31/07, right on time (her due date).  She was 8lbs 6oz and 22″ long.  As of last week, she was 13lbs 6oz and 26″ long.  A regular flood which may bother me except that it’s all mama-milk, in which case how could I complain?  Really, there’s nothing to complain about.  She’s heaven to me.

Now, a little more fun…  I started knitting late last year.  Or rather, I started twisting wool around a couple of sticks.  Occasionally something useful and less than hideous results.  It’s been actually a few months since I picked up a pair of needles, although I did start a new soaker for Ellory the other night; we’ll see how long it takes me to complete.  However, after failing to dye my hands (not to mention some fiber) for the better part of last year, I did get break out my acid dyes last week and set out to stain a hank of wool.  The result was pretty far off base of what I was going for, but I like it nonetheless.  I’ve dubbed it “Woodland” which is a totally lame description, but I’m lacking in creativity this day, so the name is stuck.

Okay, enough for today.  I should do a few things before hubby and Sophie return from their errands.  I’ll try to be back.  {snicker}

Best,

Meagan

I think I’m coming in on this craze a little late, but I discovered how to make these adorable fabric fortune cookies!  A friend at Sewing Mamas posted a sew-along and I immediatly knew these would make perfect little tokens to include with orders.  Since I just stocked my store yesterday, I decided to quickly make up a batch to send along with orders.  With alentine’s Day is just around the corner, I made them in shades of red, tan and pink and included a sweet fortune.  I adore these!!!

Best, Meagan

I guess this could be called a continuation of my introduction… I thought I’d take some time to explain some things about myself further. So, what exactly does RTW stand for? RTW = Ready to Wear. This term is a throw back to the glorious times when people had their clothing custom made. In the heyday of Jackie O, Marilyn Monroe and other cultural icons, buying something “off the rack” was virtually unheard of for the upper echelons of society. Today of course, very few people have custom made clothing, but the WAHM community is changing this with custom made cloth diapers, hand-knitted soakers and boutique clothing with a focus on children. RTW is often used in the sewing world to designate items that have been purchased at a store.

The significance of the term in my blog title is to draw attention to the fact that I find myself as one of the few seamstresses in a world of buy-it-now, mass produced, outsourced, foreign made items. In making a conscious effort to buy hand-made items, you are not only supporting a dying art (sewing, of course), you are supporting a family. So not only do my patrons support my family’s livelihood and allow me to stay at home with my daughter, they also get to experience the joy of having quality, handmade, one of a kind, custom made items for their children. That’s something we all can feel good about!

Not all of my posts will be directly business related, but I will take another second here to tell a cute story about how I came to call myself the “Head Stitchest” at Patchwork Pixie. My brother, Andy, has a brain injury as a result of a car accident 6 years ago. He was 19 at the time of his accident, and was in a coma for quite some time. When he came out of the coma, he had suffered severe injury to the left frontal lobe of his brain which in turn caused the right side of his body to be basically non-functional, leaving him in a wheelchair. He has fared much better than many other Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) survivors, but the injury left his personality and memory forever changed. One Spring, while vacationing in Charleston, SC (my husband’s birth place), my mom was helping Andy into the vehicle. As she pulled up on the belt loop of his pants, the loop ripped free. As I was sitting in the back seat, he stated rather matter of factly, “It’s okay, my sister is a Stitchest“. This is funny on so many levels ~ but needless to say I latched on to that little word lapse and it has become part of who I am. The Stitchest.

And just because no blog post is complete (IMO) without a picture, I’ll leave you with an absolutely hilarious photo of Andy, taken on a particularly rainy September day at the English toy store in The Worlds at Epcot Center in Walt Disney World. Andy’s nickname, somehow, has become “Bub”. Thus, I give you Bub the Bobby.

Yours, Meagan

Well, you’re here so maybe you know me? Maybe not, so I’ll embellish a little… My name is Meagan, mama to my sweet pixie Sophie Elise (age 4, going on 24) and the head “stitchest” (more about that fun little title later) and owner of Patchwork Pixie. My husband of five years is Jimmy. I’m a SAHM/WAHM and he’s a work-away-from-home daddy. I enjoy sewing, crafting, gardening, shopping, and reading and playing with Sophie. I also spend a fair amount of time online, chatting with my girlfriends and fellow WAHM’s of Midday Faire and talking sewing with the endlessly talented women at Sewing Mamas.

I actually started blogging late last year, but my blog got eaten during a site move and I’m just now getting back into it. I’ve caught on to a few of the fun blog themes that go around, and “Self Portrait Tuesday” appeals to me, in it’s various forms. In light of that, I’ll grace this first blog post with today’s self portrait — an actual head shot — so that you might feel you know who’s chatting with you when you read this.

Well, I hear Sophie calling me and although I could fill the page, I guess I’ll find a stopping point. I’m a chatty kinda-girl, so rest assured that I’ll be back. I hope you will, too!

Warmly, Meagan