About me

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!

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!

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…).