How It All Started.

I've been sewing my whole life but never really thought anything of it. When I was a child, I used to build houses for my stuffed animals. Then restaurants, grocery stores, shopping centres. Walls from boxes, 'hardwood' floors out of popcicle sticks that I hot glued down in rows. Little fridges with clay cupcakes in them, shopping carts made out of tiny finger skateboards with playing cards cut and taped into little buckets and handles made of k-nex. A couch made of sponges cut, then covered in red velvet fabric that I covered in gold glitter glue. I wish I had pictures of these but I don't. I dreamt of being an interior designer, despite making clothes for myself all the time.

I was also taking piano lessons, and the teacher would notice I would always come over with new clothes, and be so proud of them, although I didn't even notice this. In my mind, I just thought 'why should I have to pay hundreds of dollars on these cool pants when I don't have that kind of money, I'll just learn to make it myself'. One day, after seeing what I had made that week, she asked me what I wanted to do, and said I should be a fashion designer. That was the first time I thought about that (in junior high) and the thought never left my head. I remember what I was wearing that day. These arm warmers I made from this bright pink plaid fabric that hung down in points by my wrist, that had some tulle cut in triangles around the hem, and this funky elastic around the top held on with safety pins to keep them on my arms. I wish I still had them. I wish I had photographed everything I made, and I eventually did start doing that.

Since then I've wanted to not only make clothes to sell, but to own a store. I've dreamt of how I would organise it, how I'd decorate it. A lot of things have changed but some have stayed the same. These thoughts have been taking over my mind as of recently. I know its nothing that I can do anytime soon (still needing to settle after moving, save money for the future, etc, but I know that I will eventually. I need to do this so I don't have that regret in my life and I don't want my whole life to go by wishing that I'd done it sooner. I already wish I had been as serious about what I do now when I was in high school, and hadn't waited so long to get an etsy store. (I didn't have a credit card for a long time after I had wanted to open one, and one day decided to try a prepaid credit card. Worked like a dream and my first sale was a month later. I never should have waited so long to try it.) I'm itching to do more craft shows because I want to get into that scene.

Point being, once you realize what you want to do, go at it full force and don't let anything stop you. Every story has a beginning and don't let yours go untold because you didn't realize what it was.

I know this has been a long post, but I wanted to share this with you. I also wanted to share some pictures I took of some of the first things I made. I think it's interesting to see where it all started and compare it to now..

Made from the knee down of a pair of jeans, folded over on the inside for the lining. Bedazzled with japanese characters.

Two purses. The bottom one has the first (and only real) attempt at machine embroidery I've ever done. 

My first attempt at stencilling. 

I'm pretty convinced a very well known store ripped off this idea. Far too many similarities to be coincidence.

The first necklace I ever made (besides ones as a kid). A woman I was staying with in BC during Katimavik was an avid beader and taught me how.

After finally building up the confidence to make things for other people, I made this skirt for a friend (slash biggest customer/person with the biggest collection of TR products :P)

I thought I was the shit. Nuff said. 

The first thing I ever sold on etsy. I've been wanting to make more like this but I never have. Maybe its nostalgia holding me back? (Or laziness.. Quite possibly the laziness..)