For a solid year now I’ve been telling people I’d start listing my bags on Etsy to sell. Today, although my Etsy shop still stands empty and sad, I make a huge scary brave step towards selling my creations: opening custom ordering! I like this as the first step for a few reasons:

• Making a custom bag for someone involves a lot of intention and provides focus. It’s less daunting than just freely making a bag and listing it.
• Making something for someone specific leaves no room for “will someone buy this? who is the person carrying this bag around?” Which means more time on the important part: the creativity and sewing!
• Collaborating and working with others is hard but rewarding, I look forward to connecting with new people and points of view
• I get to have conversations with my customers and get to know them a little better, which isn’t always the case when orders pop up on Etsy
• By helping people define their style, I’ll be able to better hone in on my own, making the next step (Etsy listings) a little easier
• My customers end up with something unique, made just for them ????

Requesting a custom order is easy. From the Custom Order page you can download the order guide and fill out the request form. The guide and form take you through bag styles and descriptions, base prices, fabric styles, color families, and special add-on features. If you’re in the dark about what you want but know you want something, the guide can help demystify the choices a bit. Helpful tip: clicking the download link will open the guide in Dropbox, which you’re more than welcome to use to view it, but if you want to download it, simply click on the ellipse icon (three dots) in the top right corner and select “Download”.

The magic of the ordering guide is in the combinations you all will come up with. Feminine, whimsical, floral fabric styles won’t turn out the same as feminine, mod, floral fabric. So go ahead and check off all those boxes you’re interested in, all of those pieces add up to create your special style, which is exactly what we want your custom bag to capture.

This is only the beginning for this guide; as I vet more bag patterns and expand my own skills, the guide will grow to reflect those changes. One item that will surely be added soon is a gallery of pictures of the various bags (some here: weekend, day bag, zipper pouch, grocery bag). However, with the holidays approaching faster than we think (they always do) I wanted to get my MVP order guide out there for special holiday orders (and before then, too).

Spots are limited, but don’t rush; I want you to really love your bag. I want you to pick the style that fits your needs and delights, the fabric styles that capture your fancy, and the colors and details you think you might want mixed in. So let it simmer a little bit. Go look at your Pinterest boards in search of bags or prints you’ve pinned in the past. Look at your favorite outfit and note the colors or tones. Think about how often you want to use your bag, and where you’ll be going. I’m confident you’ll feel it out. Aaand just in case you still aren’t sure, you can select multiple options on the order request form; we’ll figure it out together. 🙂

Lastly, I am open to exploring other bag types, and have plenty on the horizon that I’ll be trying out. Just keep in mind that it will take a little longer for me to test the pattern and alter it to my liking. So in the ‘Special Feature’ section of the Custom Order Guide don’t hesitate to tell me about your idea. ????

Whew! I’m buzzing, ENJOY ????????????