Wednesday, April 30, 2014

legitimate!



~@~

all my i's are dotted,
and
my t's are crossed!
i'm a legitimate business now;)

~@~

it's crazy sometimes
how things come to be...
five months ago,
i wasn't even thinking
about going into business
for myself.
i was in my third month
of a six month,
contracted position
in marketing and sales
for a business
owned by
dear friends.
all i was thinking about
was
getting their name out there
and promoting their 
product.

~@~

then in mid-february,
 a hobby-intended,
Christmas gift
(embroidery machine)
took on a life of its own!
and now...
i'm getting orders
right and left for my work,
which i happen to love,

just a few of which...








from people
whom i happen to love... 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        





("big happy smiley face!")

sew,
welcome to Lane Originals...
home of
Lane Originals:D

love and God's blessings,
dani xxx

Monday, February 10, 2014

oh, brother...


as i wrote in a previous post,
i was thrilled when, for Christmas, 
meester berrong gifted me 
with a brother pe770, 
embroidery machine 
i'd been eyeing.

it was a proverbial breeze
to set up and start using.
however,
not so long after doing so, 
i started experiencing 
a few kinks.
(immediately, john told me 
to take it back
and get a bernina,
which his sister has 
and loves.
he went on to say 
he was going to get me 
the bernina for Christmas 
but wasn't sure 
how serious i was about 
embroidering.)
anyway, i worked through 
those first kinks 
with the help of youtube's 
vince arcuri,
who retired from the military 
and took up embroidering 
as a hobby.
if not for vince 
and his experience 
with the brother pe770,
i would have been totally lost 
when i started experiencing issues 
with my machine.

~@~

i embroidered and sewed 
pillows for my front porch 
and monogrammed
a couple of scarves  
experiencing only a glitch 
or two. 
however,
the third scarf was a totally 
different experience.
doing everything the same 
as i'd been doing, 
i hooped my fabric, 
lowered my presser foot, 
and pressed the button 
to start embroiderying.
when it started it seemed fine, 
but about 20 stitches in,
i noticed my embroidery arm 
wasn't moving...

hence, i stopped the process 
and found my machine 
had pulled my fabric 
down into the bobbin
chamber.
my machine was eating 
my scarf!
further, the only way
to get the scarf
(and wad of thread)
out of the chamber
was to cut it:(



hoping it was an isolated 
incident, i took in
a deep breath, 
re-hooped the fabric,
cleaned the machine, 
and
tried again on the other 
end of the scarf.

the same thing happened.

i thought maybe it was 
a fabric issue...
(like, maybe the fabric was too 
delicate or something)

~@~

unfortunately, 
that was not the case.
on friday night
my machine ate
3 of the next 4 
projects i attempted.
so, first thing saturday morning,
i called
to see if i could still 
return it.
the customer service representative 
told me i could...
as i was still under 90 days.
so, that's what i did.

afterwards, john and i went 
to evansville to the bernina store
and ordered a new machine.

~@~

i'm sharing this because 
several of my readers 
and fellow facebook'ers
messaged me about the type 
of machine i was using
and if i was pleased with 
the machine.

the bottom line is 
i would not recommend
the brother pe770!

(when it works,
it's great;
but,
the other 30%
of the time...
not so much:/)

after losing several items 
i had purchased 
to embroider,
i knew it was time to 
invest in a better machine.

~@~

so, stay tuned.
i am supposed to receive 
my bernina
on tuesday.
i hope to report 
a much more positive experience!

love and God's blessings,
dani xxx

Thursday, January 16, 2014

sew awesome!


so, when meester berrong
asked me what i wanted
for Christmas,
i didn't hesitate,

me: i want garth brooks' new cd box-set
and a new set of pots and pans...
red or turquoise.

with that,
my boy rolled his eyes at me.
(like all the way back-
i was lookin' at nothin' but whites.)

john:
iamnotgettingyoupotsandpansforChristmas!

me: ugh, why? that's what i want!

john: not doin' it...

he went on about whatever
it was he was doing.

katherine (putting in her two cents from another room):
she wants a monogramming machine,
dad!
(my girl has ears like an elephant.)

i looked at john.

me: seriously, i really want pots and pans...
some pretty ones.

~@~

about a week-and-a-half
before Christmas,
katherine came to me
and told me john was in a real
dilemma.
(last minute dilemma...
that's how john rolls.)

katherine: mom, he really 
doesn't know what to get you?

me: i told him what i want.

katherine: mom, he's not getting you
pots and pans.
it's not going to happen.
so, what else do you want?

me: i don't know.

katherine: well, what about
a monogramming machine?

me: the one i want is too expensive.

katherine: all i've got to say is,
if you don't tell him something,
there's no telling what he'll
get you. 

she had a point.

me: tell him,
 the monogramming machine.
but, if he thinks it's too expensive,
tell him,
a set of red or turquoise
pots and pans
and the garth brooks set.

~@~

you know,
i would understand
pots and pans not being
the ideal present for a husband
to go out and purchase for his wife
for Christmas...
if she hadn't asked for them.
but, i really wanted a set.
that's different.

that being said,
i really, really, really
wanted a monogramming machine.
the only reason i hadn't bought for myself
was the price.
i couldn't justify spending that much
for a toy.

~@~

apparently, meester berrong
did though
because on Christmas eve morning
(when we always exchange with each other
on the lane)
i came into the room to find
him sitting in his chair next
to something BIG all covered
with blankets.
(gotta love his wrapping!)

john: well, are you going to come
over here and see what you got?

me: well, yeah!

i pulled off the blankets
to reveal the monogramming machine
i wanted
and atop...
the new garth brooks collection!!!

all i could think...
my boy is sew awesome!!!

love and God's blessings,
dani xxx