patterns in waiting

so, i've had a lot of emails and facebook posts recently asking what i have been up to and what i plan to be up to in the near future. well, here is your answer.

NO good.

hehe, just kidding...maybe.

but in all seriousness, i hope to get my sew on again soon. all of my machines, fabrics, buttons, etc. that i am used to looking at day-in, day-out have been packed away in boxes since the beginning of may. enough is enough, i miss those guys. i am itching to get back to sewing and design.

and hopefully i will. soon. we are about to begin renovations on the house, so i will have a temporary spot for my sewing stuff (that will be shared with the kids as a play room/sewing room...sound like a disaster? methinks yes, but i am sort of desperate at this point). that means i can get to work on finishing up some of the patterns to publish and get some new ones out the door. 

pattern design was something that just sort of fell into my lap - mostly due to my stubborness and inability to let things go. i would think of something that i wanted to sew and not find it anywhere out there, therefore...i would draft until i cried and got it all just right. then, i sort of realized that it was more fun than i was letting on, and started to design for collections - mostly so that the BG that i brought you would be different, and me. and then i decided to take a leap of faith and publish some of those patterns since i had people asking (this was a decision that i battled for quite some time) and could not have asked for a better outcome. i never in my life realized that it would bring me such joy to encourage others to create and sew. it knocks my socks off. honestly, when i see people sewing my designs - it really just makes my heart smile - and i know that probably sounds all cliche - but i mean it. sewing is cool, i mean - i am sure i am preaching to the choir here considering who reads this blog, but it is such a cool thing and it is fabulous that i can reach people all over the world and connect on the same level. knocks off those socks peeps!!

anyways, before i get carried away in talking about how much of a dork i am and how rad sewing is...how about what you came here for. patterns in waiting...

these are just a few of the designs you have already seen that i will be taking the plunge and publishing the patterns. i cannot give you a time line as my life is crazy-fest right now, but i am thinking with louisa starting kindergarten next week (sniff, sniff) i may have more idle time on my hands. haha, famous last words.

so, look for these babes to hit my etsy store at some point:

the hattie - this dress was a HUGE accomplishment for me in the drafting arena and i heart it with everything i have! i hope you will too!

 the betsy - i debated to publish this one since i thought it was just another peasant dress pattern, but i have had numerous requests...and so i am happy to indulge everyone's inner brady bunch.

the trudy - this dress can take so many forms. add a flutter, add a pocket, add some funk to your heart's desire!

 

the allie oop - a dock of the bay fave that gave me fits at the drafting table!

for the boys - the clam digger shorts, i swanny i could eat that child!

bestill...the lake dress. possibly one of the few dresses that takes my breath away repeatedly.

the lazy susan top...flutter and boatneck together, yes please!

the lemonade dress - still working out kinks on this one, if a kink is categorized as personality...this one is full of it. lawsy - but she will be perfecto before she hits the shop. just trying my patience in the meantime...

the ever-requested sadie...be her a skirt or a top, including a tutorial on colorblocking the BG way.

another for the boys - the henry pant. a flat-fronted trouser with a cuff on the bottom. i am still debating on whether or not to include instructions for the suspenders as well, i heart them...but don't know if everyone will...what do you think?

so, that is what is on tap here in the near future. i've got my hands full for sure. and who knows...the creative dragon that has been laid at rest all summer may come out and blow some fire up my rear end for some new designs.

i say it again and again, and i mean it again and again...thanks for being the BEST damn customers a girl could ask for. rock on all my BG ladies!

something new for BG & HB

whoooaaaaa...remember me?

these poor, poor neglected blogs of mine. :)

okay - to fill you in a bit, brownie-goose is now stationed out of athens, ga in a house that is amidst renos/unpacking/hooligans/etc. my sewing room is all still in boxes and will remain that way for at least another month, if not more. i've got to get my husband started in his new job, louisa settled in kindergarten (sniff) and nash in mother's morning out (sniff again). and then, it is momma's turn!

but, in the meantime i have been getting some of the dock of the bay patterns up in the shop for you to sew and love, and i have to admit...the pictures i have seen of the work you ladies have done, wow - yall rock it for real!

well, i have another coming out this week - and something really fun, new and exciting to try with it. ready??

if you follow me on facebook, you are no stranger to HBfabrics. hilary (the girl behind HB) has been my fabric supplier since the get-go. she is awesome like that and has been such a huge help to BG when planning collections, keeping my secrets, helping me out with discontinued fabrics (which we all know i tend to love a little too much), etc. and i think you all know how i like to support a fellow momma out there working to stay home with her chirrens (and she just had the sweetest little girl, who i like to call baby HB to make 3). anyways, if you haven't ordered from her before...here is your perfect chance!

HB and BG are teaming up! 

i can hardly stand my excitement in this! this week (tuesday), i will publish the tilly pattern

in the etsy shop and if you order in the first 3 days (offer expires midnight of thursday the 26th) -  i email you the pattern AND a discount code good for 15% off your order at HBfabrics. because we all know...there is NO such thing as too much fabric, and you need fabric to make a pattern, right? ;)

while writing this blog i decided to cruise hilary's shop to see what all she has in right now and i picked out a few of my faves for the tilly and thought i would share.

• this print makes me smile - does your little one have some denim shorts? if so, i think it would make the perfect outfit!

dear stella bukhara fez in multi

• and this one, we all know that BG loves a chevron (and guess what, so does HB! she has tons of them) and this yellow is dying for a big fat navy or grass green button in the back!

riley blake chevron in yellow

• and now, for my fave...seriously - if someone doesn't make a tilly out of these two gorgeous fabrics to pair with some polka summer sailors soon i just might fall out. if i knew where my sewing machine was, i'd be all over this one right now. plus - michael miller used the word "thar" and we all know i LOVE me some sailor/pirate talk. :)

michael miller thar she blows in sea with riley black seaside dot in blue

might i mention she also has buttons? eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeks. danger for the girl behind BG.

okay...now that i have convinced myself that i "need" new fabric (it is truly an addiction, but the way i see it is that there are many worse things i could be addicted to, you know...like buttons) let me get back to putting the finishing touches on that tilly. :)

so, fun, fun news - new pattern this week and fabric coupon! hot diggity dog!

what's going on

okay girls - wanted to take a moment to fill everyone in on what is happening in the world of BG for the moment. as you all know - you kicked booty when it came to dock of the bay upload. and i also made another big announcement on this blog about taking some time off to smell the roses. i have had bookoos of emails and facebook posts (when i can find them, timeline is killlllling me) asking about when to expect all of the patterns that will be published for dock of the bay. and here goes.

we are moving out of state in 2 weeks. we aren't moving directly into our athens house since we wont close on that one until the end of may, and close on our jackson house on the 15th. me, my kiddos, my labradors and a striped kitty will be moving in with my mother in law while byron hangs out in jackson to finish out his residency. thankfully, OH SO thankfully, we are having movers pack and move us. HOWEVER, i am in charge of packing my sewing room. smart move on the mover's part! so, this is how i have things planned. i cannot guarantee things will go as planned - but if all is right in the world, this is how it will go down.

this next week i will be doing all the sewing/photographing for the pattern pdf instructions. then, i will pack up my sewing room (sniff, sniff) and get the house somewhat ready for movers to come in and make sense of it all. then, while at my mother in law's, i HOPE to get working on all the drawings of the pattern pieces and construction of the pdfs. if this all goes as planned, i will have the patterns published and in the etsy store before we move on june 2. HOWEVER, i will have to close down my etsy store for a few days while moving and not having internet access.

now, we all know about the best-laid plans, so we shall see. :)

just a little update for you ladies and also please know that if you have emailed me and haven't heard back yet - i promise i am getting there. my email box is out of control right now and i am trying my darndest to tame it somewhat! i never realized how crazy it all gets before a move!

thanks girlys and i will put any/all updates on patterns on here or facebook!

blaze of glory

OH MY WORD. you girls seriously kicked some booty in the dock of the bay department this week. today, when i pulled up my products page of big cartel to see that everything listed said "SOLD OUT," i cried. i am not an overly emotional person (unless i am pregnant...those hormones are strong - and PS i am NOT preggo) but this morning, i just sat at my computer and bawled. and then i realized how silly i looked. WHY was i crying? i did my best to blot my tears (since i had JUST self-tanned and i certainly don't need stripes on my face, no matter how much i love stripes) and figure out why i was crying.

this is what i came up with. mostly because i am exhausted. i totally miscalculated the amount of time i would need to get everything done for the uploads. i have literally BUSTED it in these last 2 weeks and i have about 3-4 more days of busting still ahead of me. so yes, i am tired and probably delirious. i also realized i was absolutely amazed at how everything went so quickly. take the sadie today...i honestly thought i would have a ton of sadies laying around that i would have to get rid of after the uploads. i didn't think people liked them like i did, and BOY was i wrong. those flew out of the shop like a flock of geese. this humbles me to no end. i've said it before and will probably say it again and again, it brings such joy to me to know that the things that i piddle with in my sewing room, that the things that keep me up at night, those things i get so excited over, and those things i pour every ounce of passion and heart and soul that i have into are so well received by the most amazing group of customers and supporters i can ever imagine. i honestly cannot put it into words how it makes me feel, but while i was grasping for the words i realized that more than anything...the reason behind my tears was none other than PRIDE. brownie-goose is a huge accomplishment for me. and to see those words "sold out" on my computer screen made me realize, i can finally pat myself on the back. it was then okay to cry, and so i did. those tears of joy took me straight over to cloud 9 (and creepy streaky-faceville, but whatevs).

so this is when the title of blaze of glory comes in...

this is when BG is supposed to go big. this is when i am supposed to schedule trunk shows and hire keepers and put BG into more hands then before. this is when i am supposed to hire help so that i can keep up with the demand for BG. this is when i am supposed to sign contracts with the boutiques that have asked about wholesale. this is when BG is supposed to rock the house.

but, for those of you that know me...you know good and well i march to the beat of my very own drum. and that drum is telling me once again, that is NOT my BG. in fact, my drum is beating the tune of an old fave, the lovin' spoonfull's what a day for a daydream. these lyrics in particular sum it all up...

And even if time ain’t really on my side
It’s one of those days for takin' a walk outside
I’m blowin’ the day to take a walk in the sun

and on that note...BG is taking a break to take a walk outside. blowing the day to take a walk in the sun. i have no plans for a fall line. i have no plans for a spring line. i simply have NO plans.

well, that's not completely true, but it fit for the cheekiness. i do have some new patterns to publish. and let's all be honest - designing to me is like running, i NEED it. it helps me to keep the crazys at bay. so, while i am not going to disappear off the face of the earth, i am going to take a few steps back and take it easy for a while.

you see...i've been going 90 to nothing since 2008. in the next month i will move back to georgia. i have a new house to decorate (and renovate, but that is a whole other story), a town to learn again (as i am sure athens wont be the same place it was to me as a wild & crazy college student), a new life to start...and MOST importantly, i have a little girl that starts kindergarten in the fall. i want to spend every last minute with her. and i cannot forget about that sweet baby nash. i want to play outside, i want to garden, i want to cook, i want to learn to bake, etc. i have a lot that i want to start doing again...and now is the time.

i will still be making pieces to sell, just not in the masses. i will still be designing patterns when i have the chance. i will still be sewing, but for the first time in almost 4 years...BG will no longer be my priority. that's why i think of it as going out in a blaze of glory. if it all went away tomorrow - i couldn't say i have a single regret. :)

phew. and now it's public. i made that decision a few months back. i've toyed with the idea for so long, and when i finally made up my mind and saw how relieved i was, i knew it was the right decision. but, i've been nervous about telling everyone, i am not exactly sure why...but needless to say...nervous.

so, in a nutshell -

YES there are new BG patterns to come!

YES i will still be sewing and designing!

NO i will not have a fall line.

NO i will not have a spring line.

YES i will keep blogging and sharing on FB.

and most importantly...

YES, i couldn't have made it here without you.

the best customers a girl could have. more loyal than i could have ever hoped for. more supportive than i ever imagined. and hopefully, more understanding than i fear.

now, for those of you that rocked out my cartel this week - i will be starting to go through invoices, refund extra shippings, inquire about shipping info and send out info about local pick-up this weekend. keep an eye on your email. :) ALL goodies will go out by next friday, if not before...and all goodies will be ready for pick-up by next friday, if not before.

and again, i cannot say it enough.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU...from the very bottom of my heart. i love you all. cross my heart.

xoxo-
amy (the girl behind BG)