Stitch On!

Now that the riding habits are done, I can spend more time working on haversacks and embroidered items for Horsiemama's Haversacks & Mercantile.

Orders that came in while I was sewing the riding habits were completed, and they provided a nice break from the intense concentration required by the habits. 

One customer wanted two haversacks in the Palominos fabric that would fit the Hamilton and Emerson molds. I had a model on the Hamilton mold that I could check for fit,

but I don't have an Emerson. She said that Man O'War was about the same size and that if he fit, 

then Emerson should too. Despite the way these models look due to the camera angle, they both easily fit into the Palominos haversacks and so I was able to complete her order. (The first photo without a model has the Hamilton model inside the haversack.)

I knew this customer had graduated from Purdue, and I had some Purdue fabric in my stash that I offered to her. She took it all!

It was a big order of seven haversacks, but I got them done and she has already used them for a show last weekend.

Just because I am working on a major project like the riding habits doesn't mean I am not keeping an eye on fabric sales.

I have about fifteen new fabrics that I cannot wait to make into haversacks.

Some are not your typical horsey fabric (like these plaid saddles), but to me, finding unusual fabrics is part of the fun of making and selling haversacks.

Sometimes if the scale is unusually large or small, I photograph it with a model to help show the scale. This ladies western shirts fabric is cool, but the scale of the shirts would not work well on a Stablemate sized haversack.

I've got some Christmassy/holidays fabrics ready to stitch up

and some that are just plain fun (although this would work for Halloween, too.)

Currently I have four orders to finish and bring to the October Great Lakes Congress show, and then some gifts to make for Happy Trails which is the week before GLC.

The riding habits may be done, but there is still a lot of stitching to be done on my work table!