The new website + blog!

I have some very exciting news to share! The Percy Handmade website is now live and the blog has moved too!  It has been a labour of love that has been months in the making but I am so pleased to finally share it with you all.

All new blog posts will be updated on the new site so I would love it if you could add the new site to your favourites. I will be moving old posts across to the new site in the coming weeks so please bear with me while there's a bit of movement between the sites!

Thank you for your support and understanding! xx

new silk blooms for the shop

Behold! Some pretty new blooms for the shop! These gorgeous light and airy silk flowers have been handmade from silk habotai in diamond white and dark ivory with Swarovski pearl and crystal centres. Love!

silk rosettes

So, you may have noticed my current obsession with silk dupioni and silk organza. And you'd be right, I adore them and I think they're a match made in heaven. The new pretties just added include Adelaide, a gorgeous triple blossom hair comb.... and Audrey and Emilie, flower girl/junior bridesmaids headbands with rosettes.  

I actually made these a little while ago but as I'm constantly time poor, they have been pushed to the side time and time again. I'm so glad I finally had a moment to photograph them and bring them to life! I hope you like xx

ADELAIDE - triple silk dupioni and silk organza rosettes - bridal hair comb

AUDREY - double silk dupioni rosettes - flower girl and junior bridesmaids headband

 EMILIE - sheer silk organza rosette - flower girl and junior bridesmaid headband

sheer delight

You may have noticed that there are some new pieces in the shop. I've been thinking about all things sheer for the past few weeks and I'm so pleased that I've had a moment to upload the new items to the shop. I have added some photos below of some of the new silk dupioni, silk organza and silk taffeta goodies with Swarovski crystal and pearl centres. I'll be adding some more pieces next weekend!

DARCY white or ivory silk organza and silk dupioni with tattered petals, Swarvoski centre

TAHLIA white or ivory silk organza and silk dupioni with Swarovski crystals, pearls and feathers

SIENNA double silk organza and silk dupioni blooms with Swarovski centres

Giveaway time on Sandy a la Mode!

I love Sandy a la Mode and I'm very excited to be the featured sponsor for the week. Check out the giveaway here and a little interview.

The lucky winner will receive $70 credit to my store - yay! The giveaway is open internationally and closes on Tuesday 17 May 2011 at 12pm CST.

Wishing everyone the best of luck and I can't wait to see who wins!!

garters now available in store!

I probably receive one enquiry each week asking whether I make garters. Until today, the answer has always been unfortunately no, but I have taken it upon myself to learn a new skill and I have since designed and made some for the shop. I absolutely love how they turned out and I think it will be my newest obsession!

While there are only two just listed in store at the moment, all garters that will be added to the shop will be made to measure for a perfect fit. I'll be adding new garters shortly!

Below are some photos of the new Polly and Angelica. Polly is a gorgeous pure silk dupioni garter with vintage laces. Angelica is a lovely silk habotai and vintage lace garter adorned with Percy Handmade signature double blossoms.

back in business (and a sneak peak of things to come)

Thanks to everyone for their support, patience and understanding while my shop has been closed. Closing shop was actually much tougher than I thought it would be - not only because I had pretty much nothing to do while my body was recovering, but also not being able to sew as much as I wanted to was probably the most difficult part of all of it!

My lower back is finally recovering and yesterday was my first day where I could move around and not feel sorry for myself. I decided to reopen my shop today but I will not be taking on any large orders or rush orders for at least a few weeks. Any new orders that come through will be made in the timeframes specified in the listings. I have already received 6 orders across my two shops since reopening so that was a lovely surprise!

This injury was the first time I have seriously hurt myself. It did however open my eyes and made me realise that I had to change things in my life so things were more sustainable... long term.  For the past 2 years I have been working full time during the day and I would rush home to start work on existing orders into the night and on weekends. As other online sellers will appreciate, there is much more involved with running an online business than just making things... there's listings to write, photos to take, tags, responding to emails and questions, pieces to design, supplies to buy, marketing materials to coordinate/design, research, packaging, branding, advertising, promotions etc etc.

Combined, it all took its toll on me and my little spine. But, the good news is I am now committed to looking after myself (and actually doing it, not just saying it!). I will exercise more, sleep more, eat better, just general work/life balance. It will be tough adjusting as this has been the lifestyle I have given myself for 2 years but it must happen otherwise there will be no more Percy.... and a long term back injury just wouldn't be fun!

The other thing I have been thinking about over the past 2 weeks while I have been feeling sorry for myself is colour! Yes, bold, bright, raw colour. This would normally be something that would scare me but I am embracing colour and it will be part of the new revamped Percy Handmade. Keep an eye out for some new pieces made from beautiful silk dupioni in the most gorgeous shades... in fact, here's a sneak peek!

LULU silk dupion handmade flowers with rhinestone centres

Taking a little break

Doctor's orders.  I have hurt my back and have been ordered to take a week's rest to recover.  As much as my stubbornness and love for Percy is driving me to keep the shop open rain, hail or shine, I only have one spine and I need to take care of it.

While the shop will be closed for a little while, I just wanted to let all existing customers know that there are no overdue orders at the moment. All current orders will be completed in the timeframes outlined in the listings.  I am still able to respond to emails so I would love to hear from you if you have any questions or enquiries about current or future orders.

Hopefully everything will be back to normal next week (hopefully sooner!) and my apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

 Thanks for your patience and understanding!

Congratulations Diana!

Wow, I was thrilled to see that there were 78 entries for the Percy Handmade giveaway! 76 entries on my blog and 2 entries on the Facebook page! This is absolutely fantastic and thank you to everyone who participated.

Congratulations to the lucky winner Diana Dang (#27) who I will contact shortly to share the good news! Thank you Diana, I can't wait to chat to you about your prize.

While there could only be one winner to this giveaway I will be hosting another giveaway very soon. Please keep an eye out on this page and my Facebook page for more information!

GIVEAWAY TIME!

It's been a very busy month but one thing I have been meaning to organise is a GIVEAWAY to celebrate the second anniversary of Percy Handmade!

One lucky winner can pick 1 of the 3 hair pieces below:

1. HALLIE ivory tulle and french netting bow hair comb with Swarovski pearl accents ($72 value)

2. OLIVIA white and ivory feather fascinator with rhinestone/pearl accent ($68 value)

3. ABIGAIL Swarovski crystal and pearls hair pins in silver or gold wire ($52 value)

To see more photographs or to learn more about each piece, please click on the images above!

TO ENTER:

1.  "Like" Percy Handmade on Facebook
2.   Leave a comment below stating which piece you'd like and why

For an additional entry:

3. Blog, Facebook or tweet about this giveaway (please include @percyhandmade in your tweet and mention Percy Handmade) and then come back and leave another comment!

And that's it!

The winner of the giveaway will be announced on Wednesday 6 April 2011 12 noon (Australian time).

Good luck!

Second anniversary for Percy Handmade

This belated post is in recognition of a wonderful milestone Percy Handmade reached on 15 March 2011. This is a very significant date because it marks the second anniversary of all things Percy Handmade. Every day I pinch myself in sheer disbelief that I am able to do something that I truly love.  While I do work full time during the day which can be difficult when I'm juggling a number of large orders including custom requests, coming back home to work into the evening is something I love doing and I wouldn't swap for anything. I love every second of what I do and I would never have thought 2 years ago that I would be doing something which would bring me so much satisfaction, happiness and joy.  It has also provided me with some things that are just invaluable - self confidence, self sufficiency and quietly knowing that dreams do come true.

I would like to thank everyone who has made this possible for me. I would not be here if I didn't have the most wonderful and supportive customers who give me the motivation and encouragement to do what I do. I would not be here without my wonderful partner, my family and friends who have provided wisdom and perspective, a reassuring smile and words of encouragement when I need it. And of course, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Percy, my always reliable sewing machine who sits quietly in the corner when not in use, but to me is a symbol that I can make anything happen if I just put my mind to it...

xx

magazine feature: The Discerning Bride

Today I came across some exciting news... one of my Percy Handmade ivory sash belts was featured in the annual Discerning Bride magazine!

I was thrilled to flick through the pages to see one of my pieces in print - so exciting!!!! If you can grab your hands on a copy, check out pages 10 and 114.

1000th sale!

This is just a quick post to share the news that I have just made my 1000th sale on Etsy! When I first started making things in early 2009, I would never have thought that on New Years Eve 2010, just a few hours before the clock strikes midnight, that I would reach such a spectacular milestone. I'm just so thrilled!

I would like to say a very big thank you to all of my customers for their support this year. I have enjoyed every second and I cannot wait to see what is ahead for us all in 2011.

I thought I'd also include a sneak peak of some new pieces that I plan to add to my store in the next few days...

Happy New Year to all! See you next year xx

shop update: holiday sale!

To celebrate the holiday season, Percy Handmade is offering 10% off all items in store for a short time only. Please use the coupon code HAPPYHOLIDAYS2010 at checkout to receive the discount!

Please note the discount can only be provided if the code is used at checkout. Happy shopping!

update: Percy Handmade is finally on Facebook!

I have been planning to set up a facebook fan page for quite some time.... and I finally did it last night!

I'm slowly adding some photos from a product shoot with Justin Craig Photography - please find me on facebook to check them out. These photos were taken to launch my new range of pieces that I'm very excited about.

I love the new images and I hope you do too!

You can view my facebook fan page here xx

Styling by Tania Maras

Sash belt by Percy Handmade

Photography by Justin Craig Photography

front page!

How exciting... one of my items made the front page last night! What a gorgeous treasury!

percyhandmade is taking a little break

As some of you may have noticed, my Etsy store will be closed from Sunday 19 April through to Monday 26 April. I will be out of town during this time but I will still have access to the internet, although limited. My apologies for any inconvenience this may cause you but I will respond to any emails received as soon as possible.

Thank you for your understanding!

happy etsy-versary

To celebrate Percy Handmade's one year Etsy-versary, I have decided to have a birthday sale! All items in stock are now 10% off for a limited time only - discount will be provided through PayPal after checkout.

I can't believe how quickly the past year has flown by. I can't believe it was only 14 months ago that I decided to teach myself how to sew. I first met my beloved sewing machine, Percy, when I asked my wonderful boyfriend for a sewing machine at Christmas in 2008. I had absolutely no idea how to use it or what I was going to make with it but for some reason I just knew I had to sew. After all, I had been collecting fabrics and trims for several years but I never really knew what to do with them all.

As soon as I started playing with Percy, it totally consumed me. I was hooked. There were a few challenges early on (almost a few tears) and it was definitely a love/hate relationship for the first few weeks. I would often find myself in the early hours of the morning trying to figure out how to insert a bobbin, I had no idea where the light bulb was, I could never find the manual when I needed it, and it didn't help that I was frustrated with myself because I couldn't sew a straight line without breaking needles... I was a complete disaster! But it wasn't too long before I figured out some of the basic functions and within two months, Percy Handmade was born.

Thank you to all of my wonderful customers for your support over the past year. It has been an absolute pleasure working with you all and I look forward to the year head!

hello world

So here I am, my first blog entry. I've been thinking about setting up a blog for quite some time and I'm so happy to finally find the time to sit down and collect my thoughts. I imagine this will be a place to blog about shop updates, what inspires me, my next creations, and of course, to highlight some of the wonderful work out there in the big wide world of Etsy and beyond.

Thanks for taking the time to visit!