I’ve been making some new bohemians… well, more velvet cats to be precise, as the first lot sold out almost straight away.

It’s funny how things go… I spent weeks kidding myself that I had a-g-e-s to make stock for my upcoming run of seasonal fairs (I’m doing four, all in November – see the little sliding thing on the right hand side of the page for details.)

I did a bit of sewing, sure, but I didn’t really work very hard. I just sort of got a few new dolls underway and made a list of things I was going to make, ordered some stuff I needed, drank tea.

And then I got an order for the first lot of boho cats, and I made them, after spending quite a lot of time trying to work with the velvet that didn’t want to co-operate and become small felines.

And then those velvet cats sold, so I got on with another order of cats as requested, plus some travelling bags for them.

And then I realised that I needed to make stock for the Handmade Nottingham shop. So I have been doing that.

And then, I got asked to do a couple of other things… which I thought about a bit… but then all of a sudden I realised that it is mere weeks from my first fair – where did the time go? – and I have turned down the other things, because I am now proper panicking.

I only did a couple of fairs last year, but I think that by this point in the proceedings I had probably four times as much stock ready.

The problem is (and it’s a lovely problem to have, I’m really not complaining) that people keep bloody buying the things I’ve made!

In previous years I could happily stick a few things in my Etsy shop and leave them there, safe in the knowledge that they would still be there in a few weeks time whilst I did other things, and until such time as I could get round to adding more.

Or not. I’m never very diligent at stocking up my shop, particularly when there are fairs to stockpile for.

This year, I have also been promised a mention for one of my makes in a magazine. I’m not sure if I am allowed to say much about it, or even if it will actually definitely happen, so I won’t say any more. But anyway, I have put the make into my shop, because let’s face it, it would be daft not to when someone is about to start advertising it for me, wouldn’t it? I even made a few in advance, so that I would have some stock ready, should the aforementioned actually happen and people want to buy them.

But I’ve sold nearly all of those before any magazine article has even happened and now I need to make more of those too… oh dear.

I have been sewing from dawn ’til dusk every day now for a fortnight, and yet the pile of stock for the fairs seems to be shrinking rather than growing.My new bohemians will be available to buy shortly from Sarah Campbell. These black velvet cats are dressed in a gorgeous gypsy-influenced selection of archive Collier Campbell fabrics – rich velvets, embroidered and printed silks, wools, cottons and linens, with the addition of vintage trims, net, buttons and lace, leather belts with tiny buckles, pompoms and little tinkling bells from my own hoardings.

I loved researching real folk / gypsy costumes and I am rather proud of the way these new bohemians have turned out.

I just wish I could say the same about my craft fair stocks…

If you don’t hear from me for a few weeks, would someone please send round a St Bernard equipped with tea, chocolate and wine, to dig me out from under the mountain of work I have to get through?

I might be making new bohemians, but I’ve no time to act like one. ♥