Flood Auction Winners!

Happy Tuesday everyone!  Thank you for your interest and bids on my 3 Auctions.  I managed to raise a total of $76. 

Cards & Embellishments Pack
Rachael - from Rachael's Ravings with a bid of $30!

Baby Clothes & Accessories Pack
Dianne - from Dianne's Little Corner with a bid of $20!

Hair Accessories Pack
Emily  - from From Ottawa, with Love with a bid of $26!

I will be in contact with the Auction winners today.  Please let me know as soon as you have donated your funds to the Premier's Disaster Relief Fund with your receipt as proof.

So how did everyone go with their Auctions?  Did your goods go for a good price?  Did you manage to win a bid on anything??

I'll be back later with some fun stuff!  See ya!!

What are you doing today? Bidding?

What are you up to?  Catching up on some laundry?  Doing some baking?  Watching a midday movie?  Stuck at work?  

I'm stuck at work!!  The first three things are what I wish I was doing :)

Just a quick post to remind you that the Flood Auctions close today.  Some close at 9pm tonight, and others at midnight.  Mine are still closing at midnight!  I figured that there are so many of you out there wanting to make final bids at the last minute and need all night to do it :)

Just a quick reminder of what is up for Auction.

Card & Embellishment Pack

15 cards & 6 embellishments - worth $35. 

Starting bid: $25

Current top bid: $30

Go here to bid for this card pack.

Hair Accessories Pack

3 headbands, 9 flower clips - worth $45

Starting bid: $25

Current top bid: $26

Go here to bid for this hair accessories pack.

Baby Clothes & Accessories Pack

2 appliqued onsies with matching hair clips & elastic headband - worth $30

 Starting bid: $20

Current top bid: $20

Go here to bid for this clothes & acessories pack.

I'd really love to see this Auction go off!  It's been a slow slog for me compared to some others :)  If you are able, it would be great if you could make some extra bids to show support for those who are suffering greatly in the flood affected areas.  I have been working out in the devastated area's and it is heart breaking.  Memories, livlihoods and proof of hard work have been destroyed.  They will greatly appreciate your generosity!

Flea Market Finds

Well this week I think was the most successful thrifting experience in my life thus far.  I just kept finding amazing things.  There's no real story to go along with these pictures.  So I'll just show you all the pictures and you can drool :)

Fabric

Vintage pillowcases

More pillowcases

Vintage kids clothes patterns

More patterns...

And more again.

Delicious wool

Someone cleared out their button collection..,

Check out the one in the top right corner... It's adorable.

A closeup.

Love these buttons!

Love these vintage random buttons!

Not sure how I'm going to use this gorgeous trim yet but I'm sure I'll find something!

Some amazingly talented granny out there threw out her collection of doiley's.  How cute are all these little ones!! That's not even all of them!!

Some of the big ones made by the same lady.

And I stocked up on some of the basic colours.

 So as you can see I was rather successful.  Finding new homes for all these goodies was interesting.  I can't wait to start creating with it all!

Now don't forget my Auctions end tomorrow night at midnight.

Go here, here and here to check them out and make last minute bids!

Big day!

What a day!  I went out to Fairfield with my dad today.  It was one of the suburbs that was hit the worst.  They were told they would not flood.  But they DID flood, up to their ceilings.  I think they started evacuating as they watched the water come for them.  So they didn't have much time.  Most people lost everything, accept what they could stuff in their cars as the waters rose up their ankles.  My dad was lucky and yesterday he was able to help people empty their houses and get started on the big jobs.  Today was more of a follow up on that.  I was ready to get dirty!!  But I didn't get very dirty :)

I only took a couple of photos.  I felt guilty, like I was there to be a tourist, and not a volunteer.  So I snuck one photo while still in the car, and two inside a house when I was the only person in there.

When we arrived on the street we were working on, there were army personnel everywhere. 

They just helped wherever they could.  Ripping things out, taking away rubbish.  They were pretty awesome!

My dad showed me some of the houses he worked on yesterday.  One particular house, was emptied by dad and a few others yesterday.  The tenants are away in Sydney, and were there when the floods came in last week.  What a horrible thing to come back to.  A mud sludge house, and all of your belongings have either floated away or been destroyed and thrown out.  Her dad was there today to check it out.  He didn't want to go inside and see the damage, it was too hard for him to see. 

These photos were from inside this house.

It was just heartbreaking to see such a beautiful house destroyed. 

The water went all the way up to the moulding on the ceiling. 

After seeing this house we went across the road to help a lovely widow that dad spoke to yesterday.  He promised her he would high pressure hose all the mud off her house for her.  So he did!  I went inside and cleaned up all of the furniture she was able to get up high enough that it didn't get damaged.  She had beautiful antique furniture and doors, so I did my best to restore them back to their previous condition.  There were sparkies re-wiring the house while I was there too.  Poor guys had to crawl under the house in the sludge.

Luckily there were nurses roaming the streets offering free tetanus shots! 

We took a lunch break and found that a group of volunteers were putting on a BBQ on the street corner!  So we had delicious sausages on bread for lunch and some biccies that I had packed. 

Luckily the weather eased off a little today so it wasn't too uncomfortable. 

Well I think that's everything.  I really didn't do much.  I just sat in a house washing down furniture!  But when the lady came home after lunch and found out I'd just cleaned her furniture for her, I could see the expression on her face change.  It was so nice to see how much of a difference that made for her. 

****

Now for a few housekeeping things!!

Thank you everyone who has volunteered to make a Softie for my Softie for Smiles Appeal!! You are amazing.  It's not too late to join in!  Just pop over here to find out the details and let me know if you want to participate!!  (If you have already signed up and I have missed your name on the participants list in my sidebar, please let me know!! I think I have everyone... but is also likely that I don't :P)

Also on that note, I have been speaking with a few people and may have a place for all of your beautiful softies to go soon!  I don't want to tell you just yet, until I know for sure so I'll keep you posted.

My auctions are picking up!!  Yay!!  I'm so glad that my goodies will be going to new homes next week!  Don't forget to check them out here, here and here!  It's all for a good cause!!

Also on the topic of auctions, if you have a moment, pop over to Dianne's Little Corner.  She is a friend of mine who spent a good couple of days making lots of cute kiddies clothes to auction off and as yet, has not had much traffic to her blog for the auctions.  I'd love to see all her goodies go to new homes too!!  

Ok I'm still going.. sorry!

Don't forget to pop over to my shop!  Lots of goodies still available!

And last but not least... I have signed up to do a Pay It Forward this year.  Pop over here to learn more! 

PHEW!  Got through it all for now.  I have a list of all the things I need to blog about!  Getting a little behind :)  Life will be back to normal next week so I'll get a blogging again.  But to keep me accountable I'm going to tell you what I need to blog about.

- brother's wedding
- all our new furniture/appliances
- the piano (yes we got the piano and it's A-mazing)
- my flea market finds
- softies update
- summer photos

Just a few to keep me on my feet.

Hope you all enjoyed your day!

Disappointment

Chin up, chin up
Everybody loves a happy face
Wear it, share it
It'll brighten up the darkest place
Twinkle, sparkle
Let a little sunshine in
You'll be on the right side
Looking at the bright side
Up with your chinny chin, chin up!

Ok so I've been feeling sorry for myself lately.  I think I have documented well my Market failures in the past here and here.  But even though I failed miserably after all the stress and hours upon hours of hard work, I decided I woud be fine and kept my 'chin up'.  I thought, well maybe Market's are just not for me?

I decided that perhaps doing some giveaways would help.  I noticed the followers on my blog slowly creeping up.  I was really excited to see it.  After the giveaways, I noticed them creeping back down again.  So some people were only in it for the freebies.  I tried to not let it get to me.  In the meantime, I parted with a good portion of my 'stock'.  But I told myself to keep my chin up and it's still early days.   

So next I tried selling things here on my blog with no success.    But I just kept that 'chin up'.  (I kinda knew that one wouldn't work).

Then I thought, well everyone seems to be highly successful in having an Etsy or Madeit store.  So I got myself organised and opened a Madeit store.  I'm 3 weeks into that now.  No sales, and not even an item listed as someone's favourite.  But I thought, don't let it get you down Christy.  These things take time.  This time round it was getting harder to convince myself.  My chin was starting to feel a little heavy.

So after all the flood devastation, I thought about what I could do to help, and blogged about it here.  I decided I could organise a Softie Appeal, and collect handmade Softies from whomever was willing and able to help and participate.  So I officially launched my idea on my blog here.  Although this hasn't been a big success, I am really grateful for the handful of people who have put their hands up to help.  I think I will send you a little something as a thankyou because you made my chin a little lighter. 

BUT.....

.... then I decided to continue in further efforts to help those affected by the floods.  There was ALOT of talk in the bloggy world to join in with the Auctions over at make it perfect.  So at the last minute I decided to put together three bundles of goodies to be auctioned off.  I was added to the master list and ready to rock and roll and excited at the prospect of auctioning off my goods for a really good cause.  Hopefully they would sell for more then they were worth.  I also figured the traffic to my blog would be awesome (which it has been) and would introduce new followers, and that people would become more interested in my merchandise from all the views.   

This is the part where my chin got real heavy again.  Real heavy.  Two days on and not a single bid. No new followers. 

I'm sure most of you know that people are paying up to $160 for a cushion, and $200 for a book.

And still no bids.  I've considering withdrawing them from the Auction to save myself from further disappointment. 

I sat on my bed and cried for a good half hour yesterday.  I want to put my chin back up high in the air but until I can figure out what I'm doing wrong, I don't think I'll be able to do it.  This isn't something I can talk myself out of.

So this is the part where I'm asking you to be honest.  What am I doing wrong?  What can I improve in?  I really want this to work.  If I don't find an outlet to sell my goods then I will have to stop creating because it just costs too much to buy the materials and get nothing back for them. 

******

Now that you've heard my sob story, can I ask a few favours?  It will really help. 

1.  Please leave a comment and honestly tell me what you think I can do to change/improve.  How can I get more traffic to my blog?  What do you look for in a blog?  What types of blogs do you enjoy?  How can I successfuly sell items in my Madeit store?  Please be honest (just don't be mean!!).

2.  Please take a moment to check out my auctions.  I honestly believe they are great products.  I made them with great care and love and would prefer to see them put to good use then to sit in a basket gathering dust in my craft room (which all of my merchandise is currently doing).

You can see them here, here and here.

3. Please check out my Softies for Smiles Appeal.  Whether you can make a toy, if you have a pattern, if you have fabric you can donate, please let me know.  However you can contribute will make my day.

4.  And lastly, if you have a spare minute, check out my Madeit store.

******

This hasn't been a very enlightening post has it?

I promise to share more exciting things after today.  I still need to show you pictures of my brother's wedding.  And I also was successful in finding some goodies at Op Shops yesterday, and husby and I are overhauling our house - we have bought a tonne of things to upgrade our little unit in the past month.

QLD Flood Auction - #3 Handmade Cards & Embellishments AUCTION CLOSED!!

Up for grabs we have an assorted bundle of cards & embellishments.  I will list the greetings specifically.

Regular size:
- x2 "Dear Dad"
- x1 "Happy Valentine's Day"
- x1 "Make a Wish"
- x1 "Thank You"
Smaller size:
- x1 "Get well wishes"
- x1 "Congratulations"
Card Packs:
- x2 packs of 4 cards (8 in total) mini "Thank You"
Embellishments:
- x3 packs of 2 paper flowers in assorted colours (6 in total) 

This is a pack of 21 goodies, worth a total of $35

How this auction works:

1.  Bidding will start at $25 (Australian).
2.  You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address.  Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.  
3.  Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4.  This auction is open to everyone.  Postage is FREE for Australian residents, International buyers will need to pay $10 to cover some postage costs.
5.  The auction begins NOW and will END at midnight on Monday 24th January 2011.

6.  At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address).  The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send their proof of payment via email.  Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your goodies to you.

8.  Thank you for participating and happy bidding!

(Don't forget to check out my Softie's for Smiles Appeal for children affected in the floods) 

I have two other auctions.  Check them out here and here.

QLD Flood Auction - #2 Baby Clothes & Accessories AUCTION CLOSED!!

Up for grabs we have 2 appliqued girls onesie jumpsuits (both size 1).  Both come with a matching flower clip.  I have also included an elastic headband for the hair clip to be attached to.  That is 5 items worth a total of $30.

How this auction works:

1.  Bidding will start at $20 (Australian).
2.  You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address.  Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.  
3.  Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4.  This auction is open to everyone.  Postage is FREE for Australian residents, International buyers will need to pay $10 to cover some postage costs.
5.  The auction begins NOW and will END at midnight on Monday 24th January 2011.

6.  At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address).  The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send their proof of payment via email.  Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your goodies to you.

8.  Thank you for participating and happy bidding!

(Don't forget to check out my Softie's for Smiles Appeal for children affected in the floods) 

I have two other auctions.  Check them out here and here.

QLD Flood Auction - #1 Hair Accessories AUCTION CLOSED!!

Up for grabs we have 3 Fabric Flower Rosette Headbands, 4 Ribbon Flower Clips, 1 Fabric Rosette Clip & 4 Flower Clips.  That is 12 hair accessories worth a total of $45.  

  

How this auction works:

1.  Bidding will start at $25 (Australian).
2.  You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address.  Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.  
3.  Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4.  This auction is open to everyone.  Postage is FREE for Australian residents, International buyers will need to pay $10 to cover some postage costs.
5.  The auction begins NOW and will END at midnight on Monday 24th January 2011.

6.  At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address).  The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send their proof of payment via email.  Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your goodies to you.

8.  Thank you for participating and happy bidding!

(Don't forget to check out my Softie's for Smiles Appeal for children affected in the floods) 

I have two other auctions.  Check them out here and here.