Penny and I are in a fight. Remember that from when you were kids? How you and your best friend would be “in a fight” so you’d go find a new “best friend” until you suddenly were bff’s with your old best friend again? Well, that’s what it’s like for Penny and me right now. We’re in a fight – but don’t worry, I have a feeling that we’ll make up pretty soon. (And by that, I mean I figured out how to fix her so she’s exactly what I want her to be – which is what being a bff is all about when you’re 5. So, obviously I’m a five-year-old this week.)

Anyway, while I was fighting with Penny, I saw this post about a cute toddler skirt. I loved the fabrics, so while I was at my local quilt shop I picked up a charm pack of L’Amour by Moda and made a skirt for my Bear. (She’s not quite two, so she hasn’t quite learned yet that she needs to strike a pose that accentuates the skirt when mama’s using her as a model!)

So cute, and perfect for Valentine’s Day.  I have plenty of fabric left to make one for her little sister, so I think I’ll take some pictures along the way with that one and post a tutorial!

WooHoo!!! I just listed my first item for sale in my Etsy shop! It’s awesome to know that I can now sell to people I don’t know – since so far that’s all I’ve done. But that’s been keeping me pretty busy as it is.

I’m in the process of making some changes to the shop there, and this site. Pretty soon I’ll have not only a blog here, but a shop as well. So, in the meantime, if you’d like to make a purchase – head over to TheBusyBean.etsy.com. (And sure, if you go right now there may only be one item listed, but I’m working on it!)

If you’re a blog reader – enter “busyblog” in your notes to seller and you’ll get 15% off your order! Remember – you can request any of my styles in any of the fabrics listed on my page, so if you want one custom made, just let me know and I’ll create a custom listing for your bag.

Remember last week when I said I would introduce Penny this week? Or was that two weeks ago and I said I’d introduce her last week…?

As you can tell, I haven’t introduced her yet. See, my time is crazy. I want this business running so I can quit my job and work at home. But how do you get a business up and running when you have a full-time job with a three hour daily commute? I’m here to tell you that it’s nearly impossible. Especially if you value sleep as much as I do.

Luckily, I work for a company that understands the need for me to spend time with my small children an they have allowed me to make the move to part-time! Starting next week I will only work in the office two days a week. What does that mean for you, readers of my little bloggy-blog? The shop will be up (for real this time) this weekend!

Right this moment, my business partner (aka husband) is getting all of the details sorted out for me. Stay tuned for some seriously awesome ways to order from The Busy Bean!

My sister-in-law Kate (who is an awesome photographer, BTW, check out her site) wanted the perfect diaper bag. I think we came pretty close with this one.

Introducing “Katie”

katie front pocket

katie back

katie inside pockets

inside zipper

The outside of “Katie” is sleek and smooth, with three pockets for anything you want quick access to. “Katie” is very roomy inside, with pockets fit especially for diapers and wipes, two pockets for bottles on the sides, a big zipper pocket and even a hidden zipper pocket for medicines – easy enough for grownups to open, but hard enough that children won’t get in! The inside is fully lined with vinyl so spills wipe right out.

Now it’s very important to note that Kate likes big bags. We tease her that she could fit a small child in her purses. So of course we made sure that she could carry a small child in the bag designed for child things!

kate & liam

I’m going to have to work out a few kinks in the process of producing this bag before it is available in the shop (since most people can’t afford the cost of my labor it took to cut and sew this beauty). But it will eventually be offered as well.

Okay, I loved the comments.  We had the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Good thing the bad and ugly all came from one post… sorry Barry, but I’d have to disagree with you – there are some things that are better with Umlauts, but since I don’t even know what an Umalut is, I can’t say it makes everything better.

Are you ready? There are a lot in here I’ll have to keep in mind. Marijke intrigued me, I will always love Kalee, but it just didn’t fit this one. Katie couldn’t win, since tomorrow I will be introducing you all to the “Katie” and it’s not this wristlet. And although Hillary should win something, it just wasn’t her day.

However, this is a breezy bag, but I can’t call it “Breezy” because that would negate the breeziness. I guess that means I have the pleasure of introducing you to “Monica”

"Monica"

Congratulations Candice! Although you may have had an unfair advantage since you know what will make me laugh. So, sometime before midnight I will have my fabric selection up for you to choose from (I do still have fabric to match the bag you got for Christmas). Send an e-mail to bean@thebusybean.com to let me know what you want!

But wait… There’s more! The other day as I was driving home I was thinking about the next idea I have for a pattern. The only option I was coming up with was Newman – since he’s a mail carrier and all. So I was very excited when I got home and there was a post from Kate R. with the perfect name for this new bag – because who really wants to carry around a Newman? Not me! Therefore, we have two winners! Kate R., send me an e-mail with your fabric choice for a “Monica” bag as well – and next week sometime I will introduce you to “Penny” and explain how that correlates with Newman.

Update: the fabrics are now up! Just click the link at the top of the page and you will see my current offerings.

The other day I was at the bank setting up my business account (so crazy, scary, official) and Justin-the-awesome-banker-who-helped-me asked how I came up with my name. (Side note: I don’t know if Justin-the-awesome-banker-who-helped-me gets any kind of perk for being awesome, but he should. Seriously, if you’ve got a small business and have banking needs in the Draper, UT area, head over to see him at Chase.) Anyway, I decided to share here the story of why “The Busy Bean.”

Somehow, my sister has come up with the nickname “Bean” for me. I’m not 100% sure how it evolved, only that it has gone through several versions along the way. Feel free to elaborate sister. I remember Neen, Neeners, Beaner… Beaner actually stuck for quite a while until a trip to Disneyland when they wouldn’t embroider that on my mouse ears because it was a racial slur. See, all this time we were being racists and didn’t even know it. Since my sister and I are definitely not racist, that’s when it got shortened to Bean.

In fact, I’m so used to the nickname that I use it when I talk to myself. Which is quite often. Especially when I’m sewing and trying to figure out something new. I often catch myself muttering (out loud, of course), “Oh, come on Bean!”

And I’m busy. I work full-time outside the home, I have two adorable little girls, 20 months and almost 4 months, a 50 minute commute (one way), two callings in my church, and now a start-up business.

When I was thinking of a name, I knew I had to work in Bean, so “The Busy Bean” made perfect sense.

BTW – I am loving your suggestions for names. There are a few strong front-runners right now, but there’s still plenty of time to submit your suggestions. I will deliberate over everything I’ve recieved by Friday night and announce the winner on Saturday!

So, this whole idea of making handbags came about because I wanted a little bag that would hold all of the essentials, fit into my regular purse, transfer well to the diaper bag, and still be cute and functional enough to stand on its own. Not asking too much of a bag, right?

I started my search. I had heard references to etsy quite a bit, but had never ventured onto the site. I finally did, thinking that I could find something awesome to meet my needs there (as I was having absolutely no luck at the old standbys of Walmart & Target). And boy did I ever find everything I could want to fit all of my needs! But here’s the thing, as I was browsing these cute wristlets all I could think was “That’s adorable… but I could make that.” And so I did.

Here’s the bag that started my business:

(the green and white one is what I carry now. Yeah, I’m pretty much in love with it.)

On to my conundrum. I have no name for it. I’ve racked my brain (and let’s be honest, considering the past week I’ve had at work, there isn’t much left to rack), and come up with nothing. I had one, then I lost it. Maybe that’s why I can’t think of one now. So I’m turning it over to you faithful friends of my new blog to name this wristlet. Leave a comment on this post with your name suggestions. Whoever submits the winning name will receive a custom “insert name here” bag in their choice of fabrics!

One might ask, “How would one pick fabric without knowing what is in stock?” Excellent question. I have big plans for this weekend. “Project Organization” is in full swing at my house. Notice that I’ve been quite sporadic in my posting? That’s about to change. I have printed a daily calendar with tasks and room for my personal to-do list. We are buying a new computer desk with room to organize paperwork. I am cleaning off craft room shelves to make room for fabric and a new sewing table (I’ll share a post about that tomorrow). Maybe if you’re lucky I’ll soon have before and after pictures of my studio (because now that I’m in business, I prefer “studio” to “craft room”). All of this to allow for time to run my business. I’ve been so busy with the custom orders I took at the boutique in December along with a few extra special requests that I haven’t even set up my etsy shop. Not the best way to run a business.

If you’ve made it through my super-ramble, you’ll now get the answer to the question I asked for you… this weekend I will be posting pictures of all my current fabric stock. I will be loading my etsy shop with available bags as well as custom bags where you can pick the style and then choose from my fabric stock to suit your fancy. I will hopefully also have one more new style available. All made possible by Project Organization.

So, leave those name suggestions and you just might win a free bag. Spread the word. And if you come back next week, there just might be another giveaway to celebrate actually opening shop.

I craft. It’s what I do. I love a good project (yes sister, you can insert a joke about why I married my husband here).

Luckily, my husband understands my love of projects and is supporting my decision to make that my career. So, here I’ll share my journey of starting my own business from home so I can do what I love with those I love. This venture will (soon) allow me to stay home to raise our daughters.

My first project in this new journey is handbags. I’m loving fabrics and sewing lately. And I’m obsessed with bags and shoes. Since shoes are a little out of my skillset, I’ve started with handbags. Here’s my first creation:

It’s made from the City Blooms collection by Kitty Yoshida. Fully lined with fusible fleece and strong cotton. Pleated detailing and interior pockets make it stylish and functional. The bag measures approximately 12″ at the top, 17″ at the bottom with a 6″ gusseted bottom. The strap is 21″.

I’ve got to say, I’m pretty proud of this little bag.

I’m working on quite a few different projects, getting ready to launch my goods at a boutique on December 5th. A few more handbags, wristlets and wallets. And some accessories. I’ll post them here as I finish, and in my etsy shop (as soon as I set that up…).