Pesky Cat Designs

Kitty by Edward and Lilly I've been following Rebecca's lovely blog, Edward and Lilly , for quite some time so when she asked whether I would like to participate in her new segment of interviews called 3 Quick Questions, I was thrilled. Thanks Rebecca for such a lovely feature. You can see the feature and read my interview here at 3 Quick Questions: Pesky Cat Designs . You also have to check out Rebecca's shop, Edward and Lilly , for the sweetest brooches, cutest softies and many other beautifully crafted handmade items. 

Posted above is a sneak preview of my upcoming fall collection.  It's my Downtown Bag in mustard colored cotton corduroy. My recent trip to the Garment District was quite a success and my studio is now stocked with corduroy in lots of new colors. I love working with this textile. Its got a luxurious yet casual feel and works with so many designs. I also purchased lots of new cotton fabric in cool retro-look prints that I plan to use to line my handbags with. One of my favorite parts of the creative process is searching out new textiles. I walk the aisles of the shops in the Garment District feeling each fabric as I pass. Sometimes a color catches my eye or sometimes a texture can. I usually have to maintain a lot of self-control so I do not end up purchasing more than I can carry back to my studio!  

I just added a new handbag to the Pesky Cat Designs shop. The Summer Tote is made from a linen- look upholstery fabric in wheat and is adorned by a bird on a branch ultrasuede applique. Check out the two sweet wooden buttons on the flap.  Last week I made a trip to the Garment District in NYC to purchase some fabric for my upcoming fall collection. Of course I was like a kid in a candy shop. The corduroy section had me in a sugar rush. I plan to introduce some of my fall handbags in the next week or so. Expect to see delicious colors such as pumpkin spice, sweet butter, milk chocolate and more!

Honestly, I can't believe it. This is my 9th Etsy front page this month. The stunning treasury posted above is on the front page right now! It was created by an Etsy administrator using the search term "woodland". Lucky for me I recently perused Etsy's gift guides and decided to tag my Offbeat Messenger  with this term. I was hoping to get my bag into the gift guide category called Woodland and Feathers , but I am more than happy to be on the front page!

This morning I got an email from the lovely Damjana of Loddelina designs letting me know that my Offbeat Messenger was on Etsy's front page! That makes eight so far this month. I feel very lucky. These front pagers have really increased traffic to my shop this month which would otherwise have been very slow due to the economy and people being away on summer vacations.  The gorgeous treasury posted above was created by an Etsy adminstrator using the search term "linen". A lot of my favorite designers were included.

I just discovered that my Offbeat Messenger with a pair of seahorses made it to Etsy's  front page today! Thanks to Etsy for selecting this treasury and thanks to Kira Ferrer for curating this stunning sea-inspired collection. You must check out Kira Ferrer Designs on Etsy. She creates the most beautiful and unique jewelry. I've had my eye on her shop for a long time. I love her  Sea Anemone Stacking Rings and the matching S ea Anemone Studs . They are on my wish list. Today I also learned that I was featured on Karen Fields lovely blog. Thanks Karen! See the post  here . Karen is a wonderful artist and her one-of-a-kind original paintings are available in her Etsy shop, Karen Fields Gallery . Her work is beautiful and the colors are stunning!  

Very early this morning my Wayfarer Purse with a Bird made it to Etsy's front page! Thank you Hal of Diaspora for creating such a cool treasury and Etsy for selecting it for the front page. Check out Diaspora for beautiful modern art to light up your living space and also check her profile for links to jewelry made with her art.  When I first saw this treasury, titled Feathered Friends ,  I thought it was front page material. Hal selected some really eclectic, fun and beautiful items. I'm thinking Bjork might be interested in  Zoe Chen's swan dress above. What do you think?! I love it. It's elegant and quirky at the same time. I personally liked Bjork's swan dress as well. By now you can probably tell that I am partial to aviary-inspired work. :)

The Flower Power Downtown Bag in Pure Linen I just added a new handbag to the Pesky Cat Designs shop. It's made from pure linen and is lined with the sweetest print. Retro-look flowers adorn the front pocket. More bags in this gorgeous linen are in production.  This week I plan a trip to the Garment District  where I hope to find some corduroy fabric for my upcoming fall collection. Below I posted some corduroy handbags for you to peruse from my shop's sold items. Have a wonderful day!

Wow, another front page! That's two in a row. My Offbeat Messenger with a bird in the woods applique made it to Etsy's front page yesterday. Woo hoo! The treasury was created by an Etsy administrator and I am guessing that one of the search terms used was "green". This treasury generated a lot of traffic to my site. Thanks Etsy!

L ast night my Offbeat Messenger with a pair of seahorse appliques made it to Etsy's front page! Thanks Etsy for creating such a cool treasury. I noticed that most of the items have something to do with wheat so I am guessing that's the search term they used to find items for this treasury. If you are wondering what my messenger has to do with wheat, that's its color! 

My new Juki arrived yesterday as scheduled! I immediately removed it from the box, placed it on my table and proceeded to read the manual. The first step was to wind up the bobbin, step two was to thread the machine (a bit different from my old one), and then I took a scrap of fabric and began sewing. This machine sews like a dream. I was in awe. I finished up the messenger bag posted above with such ease. My old machine would struggle through the thick fabric of the straps when I attached them to the bag. My Juki went through them with ease and speed. Oh yes, the speed.  1,500 spm versus my old model's 850 spm. I'm sure by now you can tell I am very fond of my new machine.  Sitting proudly in the studio

The Juki TL-98QE So the sweet little machine posted above is arriving today via UPS and I can't wait! It was ordered yesterday afternoon and I already got a notice that it will be delivered today. Wow! I have to thank Aki of Oktak handbags and purses for being so sweet and taking time out from her busy schedule to give me some advice  about which machine to purchase. By the way, you must check out Aki's handbags and accessories at her Etsy shop Oktak . Her work is absolutely beautiful. She has such an eye for beautiful fabric and design.  The Juki that I purchased is a straight stitch semi-industrial high speed sewing machine. My present machine, a Brother Innovis 40, is great for it's variety of stitches especially the applique stitch that I use the most. But for sewing handbags it is just not strong enough. I purchased it a year ago and have already cracked 4 bobbin cases! At $39 dollars a pop at my local dealer it was getting quite expensive. Yesterday I ordered two dir

I turned on my computer this morning to discover my Wayfarer Purse with a Bellflower Applique on the Front Page! Thanks Angela of RaggedyOwl for creating such a stunning treasury and thanks to Etsy for selecting it for the front page. Check out Angela's shop for beautiful organic cotton crocheted items and lovely blankets and quilts. Yesterday morning one of my purses made it to Etsy's front page so that's two in a row! 

This morning my   Wayfarer Purse with a Pair of Seahorses  made it to Etsy's front page! Thanks Etsy! I made this discovery by going to Craftcult's website and typing my shop name into  Heart-O-Matic .  The site lets you know whether any of your items were on Etsy's front page in the last  24 hours and whether you were featured in the storque or a gift guide. It also lets you keep track of your shop hearts and item hearts.  Pretty nifty eh?!  Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

Just wanted to let you know that I added a few new handbags to the Pesky Cat Designs shop today. Also, I am now taking custom orders. Please see my listing on how to create your own Wayfarer Purse . You can also contact me if you are interested in a custom Offbeat Messenger Bag . I'll be adding a listing to my shop very soon with the fabric and applique choices. In the meantime you can just contact me and I'll let you know what is available. So that's the latest news from the shop.  Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

Today I want to share with you some beautiful photos I found on Flickr. Clockwise from top left: 1. Turning Tide 2. Colorful Boats 3. Jupiter Lighthouse 4. Beach Beauty I just love the sea and spending time on the beach. I usually bring my watercolors with me and paint while I sit on my beach chair. I can spend hours just watching the seagulls and the waves coming to shore. It brings me such a sense of peace. I was inspired to create this mosaic after I discovered that my Wayfarer Purse with  Seahorses was featured on Sunshine City Lassie's blog! Thanks Amy! The post feature, Nifty Nautical Finds: handbags, coin purses and wallets , includes some really lovely summer finds. Check it out! Also check out Amy's Etsy store, Sunshine City Lassie , for some really  unique jewelry and cool vintage finds. 

Today I managed to snag a treasury ! It was by pure luck that I went to check the treasury lists and there was 1 minute left until they opened. I had to quickly conjure up a title and the first thing that came to my mind was the seaside. Using etsy's search engine I looked for items using the search terms seaside, starfish, seahorse, beach bag, summer dress and nautical.  I also perused through my favorite shops for items that would work. I love spending time by the seashore. My dream is to own a home by the ocean and I'm hoping that it becomes a reality one day!

Sometime yesterday my Wayfarer Purse with a seahorse applique made it to Etsy's front page! This whimsical treasury was created by an Etsy adminstrator. Thanks so much Etsy! You made my day. I got tons of traffic to my site and lots of new hearts .  

Today I finished four new Wayfarer Purses and started two Offbeat Messenger Bags. Posted above is some of my progress. Three of the purses that I finished today are custom orders. One is for a customer that purchased my first " Create your Own Custom Order Wayfarer Purse " from the Pesky Cat Designs shop! I already got several inquiries about custom order Messenger Bags. I plan to offer that in my shop very soon!