dur!

What's my name again?

:)

I am made out of coffee and leather. Those are the only tow things I know. Oh, and love, lots and lots of love.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

ummm...

The nap never happened. All numbers jumped. more customs, 5 simple orders off the page, convos and more convos...and while this is all happening I feel high on life, on creativity, on the challenge of it all: I am one woman supplying this little store that, before today, was a lot sleepier :) This push of energy I give is in honor of the last seven years spent sitting behind a reception desk, answering phones for someone else's dream...for all the nights I said 'If I could just live off my creativity"...for all the fear, the mornings awake wondering if I did the right thing by leaving the corporate world and trusting that this random love and skill for leather and music would pan out...this is one of those times I could have never dreamed was possible. Now I don't want to get all 'The Secret' on you, dear reader, because it's kinda annoying sometimes, but I will say this: deciding to be adventurous and trusting that your next step is the right one is the way to go. Every day I repeat certain words, and they have been an excellent chauffer. Drive on :)

I am now getting to the level of tiredness where I start referring to myself as 'Mama', and I don't have any children. Perhaps things can wait till morning? Nope...pressing on. There are koi to be born, leaves to let fall...onwarrrrrddddd!!!

xo

Turn on your heart light!!

Wow, I just looked at my hearts on Etsy ( a guilty pleasure if there ever was one! ) and there's like ten gazillion more than there was earlier this morning when I woke at dawn to list, list, list. I feel so honored to have been chosen, and to be visited so very much. It feels amazing. I used a NikonD70 SLR to take these last pictures, and I don't know how I am supposed to go back to the little grey camera that has been my constant companion...she looks so dejected over in the corner with her USB cable all bunched up...my studio needs to be reorganized and packed back up...I had twenty four hours notice of the featured seller spot as the good folks at Etsy had a last minute emergency cancellation. Don't get me wrong, I ain't complaining, it just meant total frenzy. And tons of pictures. I think I am going to take a nap: four hours of sleep never did a body good :)

ETSY FEATURED SELLER!!

Oh my goodnesss!!! I am going to be the featured artist starting tomorrow afternoon until Thursday afternoon...later that same Thursday I leave for NYC. I am going to be pretty busy between now and then: not sure how many posts there will be...my fiance borrowed a camera from work Friday and I have been taking beautiful pictures with it, perfect timing, non?

Today's Offering

Receive my endeavor, oh ye Leather Gods.

Silva Fox

In a world ( this sounds like a movie trailer ) where the art seems mostly dominated by men (leatherworking ), Silva Fox stands out to me as an inspiration and a trailblazer. On her website you can see so many examples of tremendous technique and perspective, she just amazes.
She is feminine without sacrificing some sort of regal toughness in some of her subject matter, and her coloring just blows me away. Please do yourself a favor and go see her beautiful work

http://wdstudio.net/foxart/main.htm

P.S.

Whe I look at the post below, it looks like I photoshopped orange around the edges: nope! That's the color of the walls in my studio, the color that struck fear into the heart of Anthony (until we filled the room with gorgeous furniture in mostly neutral shades )....the color......of....Mango Madness ( duh duh duhhhhhhhhhh )

It makes mornings vibrant and nights warm and creatively inspiring.

Guess I have a 'whole belt' now...

Hee heeee!! There is another half-belt listed on Etsy. I don't think this is going to stop anytime soon....this one is lighter and more flexible...the usual leather weight I use for them is somewhere in the area of 8-9 oz. leather, which is slightly inflexible and really truly lasts forever. The lighter leather is only a sacrifice if you're using it on something that is going to get brutally worn down, and well, I think we're safe with my fashion accessories, ya know?

Today's Offering

A delicate rose in neutral cream, dulce de leche and onyx.

Front Page Etsy Lovin'

Today my apple belt made it to the front page of Etsy. I was doing a rare afternoon singing gig and missed it, but to come home and have so many messages and hearts felt soooooo good. Like a big hug from a community I have felt so supported by. What a gift Etsy is. It's like a present that's different every day. Not to mention sales are steady, and I wasn't sure I would ever quite get to that place. Wow!
I still find it odd and difficult to go to the forums ( a little shy, still ) but yesterday I had the blues because my little mini portfolio was turned down by Trunkt.org and I wrote a little post saying so, and asking after my photography and if there wasn't anything I could improve: the suggestions and support came, gentle as rain and just as clean, and I found myself with a laundry list of wonderful things to buy so that my pictures will reflect the beauty of the tooling and create a little bit o' lust in the buyer.
My favorite customer got her last shipment and all is right with the world.
I am going out to run errands, banking and hopefully some good beach walking. Yesterday the entire beach was strewn with uprooted kelp beds and the water was disarmingly warm. The sky was covered in low-hanging grey marine layer clouds and I picked the only spot on the beach where dolphins had decided to frolick in the surf. Three minutes later they were gone, but not until after one completely cleared the water in a leap I have only imagined being witness to.
No matter what, Los Angeles is a fascinating and wondrous place.
Like Etsy :)
xo

There Ain't Nothin' like a Half-belt

I don't remember how it happened, but one day I realized if I made a belt that was half or a little more than half of the average waist, I would be making something that was convertible and fun. More than one option always feels so good and fires up the imagination. It could be a belt if tied with a scarf, a bag strap if attached to the rings of a good bag: you can put it across your chest for that very secure feeling purse carrying action...you can tie it low across your hips, tie it in the center of your waist...the possibilities seem endless.
I have been making one this past week, filling orders and in my spare time making this very detailed half-belt. Expect to see more :)

Up you Go!!

Yesterday my Beloved and I drove up the coast to San Louis Obispo and almost immediately drove back down again. We say llamas, disgruntled waitresses (not ours, thankfully!) and the most delicious sunset I have seen in years. It started vaguely yellow and was part-marine-layer-part-cirrus... it eventually burned itself out in an orgy of red and magenta and orange. Anthony drove and I stayed turned around, watching.
It was probably the first time in a long time I haven't watched the road, too when someone else is driving...I always feel like I have to be vigilant for the driver here in L.A. It's kinda valid...there's some kinda drug-induced driving on the freeways.
I went to bed very early and slept a much needed 11 hours, that kind of comfy sleep where the blankets and featherbed feel like marshmallows and the air outside the covers is just cool enough to make you snuggle deeper. I listed this necklace today, perhaps as a bilssful result of break-taking.
Have you had your break recently?

My Studio

Not all of it, but a small piece :)

Fashion Pups

Today I made a dog collar with the neatest font. Made me think I'd like to do more tooling around words...I do so much 'object' tooling these days.
It's been a strange 24 hours, with lots of work and thought. There are moments when I am sitting in my perfect and really beautiful studio and I almost can't breathe because I feel overwhelmed by luck and good fortune. I have love, kittehs, a great family and friendships that are so golden. My little career is blossoming shyly and there are promising things afoot.
On the other hand, I have no idea what in God's Green Earth I am doing. I had a dayjob ( a veritable series of them ) for 7 years, and sometimes the current lack of structure scares me. When orders are thin I worry, and when orders are abundant I am so grateful. I feel like this is part of what I was born to do. The other part is here:

http://www.myspace.com/allisonsattinger

Singing and tooling my days away = heaven on earth.

I am just going to keep working at both diligently and carefully.

Fruity

This week, starting the 20th ( tomorrow! ) I am a creative guest on this website:

http://www.kandfshops.com/

The theme this week is fruit, and so I have been the fruitiest girl this side of a lemon. I have made six necklaces so far and wish to make at least two more before 6 P.M. (ack?! -- it's three!) so I can have a well-rounded selection.

This is my lime slice, ever refreshing :)

Capezio Butterfly Boots

These boots have been my Everest. I came across their glory in, oh, 2002...Britney Spears had just worn them in public a lot and they were selling on eBay for 400 dollars, sometimes a wee bit less. I would watch the auctions and try not to cry when I realized I could never go where these ravenous bidders were heading, financially speaking.

That's not to say that I am the wealthiest woman now, but Britney's boots have lost some of their shine, at least on eBay. So, now I am the proud owner of a pair of size eight marbled leather Capezio Butterfly cowboy boots. As of this morning!! I did a little sweating when I was outbid with 15 seconds to go, but NOTHING was going to stop me from reaching my goal. I cannot wait to see them in person!!!!

Daily Offering

Today was one of those days when I felt like I was trudging uphill in the snow both ways...perhaps it was a lack of sales for the week thus far, perhaps I have been creating a little too much without filling up the well...the one bright spot was making the apple necklace. And there are custom orders to be filled. That's bright!

I love apples. I love necklaces. I must not be the only one in the whole world who combined them :)

Oh, and the rose from yesterday? Not so naked today!!!!! Here is the whole design, well, almost...:

Naked Leather

When I first get my leather, it is a color best described as soft tan-peach. It's beautiful. I take my trusty 12 dollar swivel knife ( my fiance tried to buy me a new one that was both expensive and aesthetically pleasing, and I couldn't shake my love for the cheap starter knife, go figure :) ) and carve in the design of choice. And tool and tool and tool until satisfied. For the center of this belt the design is a rose. When you see it finished, it's shades of brown, antiqued and wiped away. For now, for a day, it is peach.

Every project brings with it the unexpected, exhilarating and slightly frightening reality that a bevy of things could happen that would merit a restart: knife slips, leather takes the antique poorly, cat decides to help, etc...but then when it's done it feels like a mountain climbed.

I am in the foothills now :)

My offering for the day, Trinity of Leaves Necklace.

'Phnuuuuuuuu' (B-day party horn sound)

With very little labor pain, my blog is born: thanks Blogspot!!! I have created this blog to....well..er...blog! I want to share my process with my crafting brethren and sistren and put up pictures of things I go gaga over online, link to my favorite blogs. I want to offer you a fork as I share my tiny slice of the internet:

It's raspberry flavored, and homemade.

I think I need to go make a pie now, for real.

Since this is the first day of this new blog, I am going to put up a picture of my favorite bag I saw on eBay: bags are my next frontier. You can see what land I have already settled at:

www.sunnyrising.etsy.com

Come back tomorrow, k?