shimmery Japanese fabric goodies

My eye was recently caught by some lovely Japanese fabric on Etsy, but when it arrived I was even happier with the real thing! The fabric was stunning. The colours were rich and vibrant and had a slight shimmer to it.

I immediately went to work and created some really pretty new accessories for my shop, pandacub.

exclusive wristlets at pandacub

My sister, Suziesaurus, who I've already said is WAY craftier than me has sewn up a batch of her adorably cute and useful wristlets and has decided to part with some of them by letting me sell them exclusively in my pandacub shop!

These sweet wristlets are perfect for carrying around some spare cash or your camera, or some makeup whenever you need to run some errands (I use mine for toting my BlackBerry, my passcards and some spare change around at work).

Here's one she did in the ever popular robot fabric:


And here's one of my favourites because it's really pretty and feminine and would be perfect for the springtime!


As a special introductory offer, the wristlets are being sold for $15 USD until April 30, 2009 (regular price is $20 USD).

and now something for the guys...

As I'm constantly thinking of new accessories to add to my shop, I wanted to include something for the men.

So, here we go - the most adorable cufflinks, made out of the super popular robot fabric:


Want a pair for your own special guy? Check out my shop!

trying out new things...

So I've filled my shop with buttons, bobby pins, ponytail ties and rings...what's next? Always on the lookout to create even more things, I'm in the process of adding even more goodies to pandacub's line of accessories!

Coming soon are button cufflink and button earrings (just waiting on some supplies), but this past weekend I introduced button brooches/pinbacks and non-button necklaces and earrings!


Now, the jewellery is a bit of a curveball, since, up until now, my shop has only been selling button-related accessories. To understand the jewellery thing, I'll have to take you back...waaay back.

I've always been obsessed with beads (am I part magpie?) since I was a child. I just can't resist them - shiny, colourful, sparkly...so a few years ago I finally decided to put my obsession (and growing bead collection) to good use and started making my own jewellery. Next thing I knew, I had lots of pretty necklaces and earrings and not enough time to wear it all. I started giving some away as gifts, but also toyed with the idea of selling them

A couple of years ago, when I first discovered Etsy, I opened up my first shop, blue pebble, and started selling my jewellery. I sold a few pieces, but just didn't have the time to fully devote myself to the amount of work that went into a successful business. So I took a break.

Then I fell in love with my little fabric buttons and a new obsession (with fabric) was born.

Last month, though, I glanced longingly at my racks and racks of beads and findings and half-finished necklaces and decided that I just couldn't let that part of me go. My wonderful sister, suziesaurus, who's my semi-business partner, encouraged me to start selling non-button goodies on pandacub as well, so here we are!


I'm a little weary about branching out, as I know many veteran Etsians preach "find your specialty, stick to it", but to me, it's still all about creating fun and affordable accessories to make every day life a little more sweet, whether it's button-related or not - I hope you agree!

rushing the seasons...

I know, I know, it's only early February, but I'm done with winter and I'm ready for spring and summer! Where are you, my favourite seasons?

Perhaps it was this fabric and these cute little ponytail elastics (available in my pandacub shop) that have my mind on spring already:

pandacub's panda cubs

I finally got my hands on some adorable panda cub fabric that I've been wanting forEVER. I got both pink and blue and I couldn't wait to create with them! I bought this fabric from Etsy seller, MyHeartandSew.


Of course, I had a good giggle as I looked at the cute little panda bears. The one that made me laugh out loud was this one - it's mooning me!


So, anyhow, here's the first thing I made with this new fabric. Some adorable blue pontail elastics! Like it? Check out these and other accessories I've made with this great fabric in my pandacub shop.

a pony a day...

...keeps the bad hair days away! :)

New in the pandacub shop - a set of 7 different adorable ponytail elastics. Now you can add cuteness to your day every day!


I'm also working on making a set of 7 ponytail elastics that feature patterned fabric so on those days when you want to wear something a little more "formal" at work, you have other elastics to choose from!

new fabric means new products

Back in early December I bought some new fabric and I finally made some cute new accessories for my shop and got them listed. Here's a few of the new products - aren't they adorable?

Cute new bumblebees (I also got this fabric in brown, but I love the blue!)


Haha, this little dachshund was too long for one magnet! :)


I've been looking for this little sailor boy fabric for the longest time and finally found some on Etsy at a great price, so here he is! Isn't he adorable?



At the Holiday Trunk Show at the workroom back in early December, my robot magnets sold out super quick and I had to remind myself to stock up on the robot fabric whenever I can. And I was also asked to expand the robot "offerings" in my shop. So here are some robot bobby pins for the techie gals!

christmas gifts from etsy

As I've mentioned before on this blog, I've really put a lot of energy lately into re-discovering "the crafty life" and I noticed that the handcrafted spirit is extra-strong around the holiday season.

Although I did buy most of my gifts at the usual shops, I did manage to snag a few beautiful gifts on Etsy.

My sister, who is way craftier than I am, sews (which I would love to learn how to do) so I got her a couple of fun pincushions. My sister and I also share a weird affinity for fake food, so I just HAD to get her the sushi pincushion!

Sushi Pincushion by MissLittlejeans

Mini Blue Daisy Pincushion by TheBlueDaisy

And I got this stunning journal for my friend, who's a big Shakespeare fan. This journal is even more beautiful in person and I had a hard time giving it up! I may have to buy another one for myself! Elizabeth, the artist who designed the cover, has her work sold at the Globe Theatre (Shakespeare's theatre, for those of you who don't follow these things) and at Shakespeare festivals around the world and it's easy to see why! She's super talented!

Hamlet Journal by immortallongings

Not to be outdone, my sister (who I already said is way craftier than me) made me this adorable change purse from one of my favourite fabrics! It matches the wristlet purse she made me earlier this year!

Free Shipping Promotion

It's the super-crazy shopping frenzy known as Black Friday and Cyber Monday!

Pandacub is offering free worldwide shipping on all its items! Sale starts at 8am Nov 28 and ends at midnight on Dec. 1.

So quick! Take advantage of this great deal and pick up some cute hair accessories for yourself or stocking stuffers and gifts!

See my shop for more details!

pandacub.etsy.com

cats everywhere!

I absolutely adore cats. I have had a huge love of cats and kittens since I was really, really young and now I've finally added some cats to my shop!

Some are really pretty and others are whimsical - which ones do you like best?


top row: princess kitten; purring harmony
bottom row: hi kitten; here kitty kitty
(by pandacub)

ponies for the grown-ups too!

An Etsy forum reminded me that adults wear pony-tails too (I know I do!) so I was inspired to start thinking of a line of hair accessories with a more "grown-up" flair and I think there's some great ideas coming out.

Check out this gorgeous dark blue pattern I turned into ponytail elastics!

flowers in the dusk (by pandacub)

my best seller...

Happy Monday everyone! As anyone who knows me can tell you, I'm NOT a Monday person, but I've decided to make the best of it.

Pandacub has officially been open for just over 2 months now and I'm already at 33 sales! I never thought that it would be going so well after such a short span of time and want to give a huge thanks and virtual hug to all my customers, Etsy friends, and blog-readers for your support. :)

To celebrate, I'm posting a photo of my current best-seller. this cute little deer - part of my In the Forest bobby pin set. I like this pattern so much I've bought the same fabric with 2 other background colours (blue and pink) and will start posting those soon!

In the Forest (by pandacub)

mmmm...cupcakes!

I just got this adorable new fabric covered with cupcakes and I wasn't sure which ones to use for a magnet set, so I put them all up! It's like going into a cupcake bakery and being able to choose your five favourite cupcakes to take home with you! :)

my favourite little nut collector...

I recently bought some great new fabric from an amazing Etsy seller that I have just discovered - sweetflavor. I can't wait to buy more for her, but in the meantime, I have used some of the fabrics I bought to make new items for my own shop.

in my garden (by pandacub)
And I fell in LOVE with this adorable little squirrel! I made bobby pins with him and he and his little red birdy friend sold within ONE DAY of listing! Wow!

So now I have to make more adorable little squirrel bobby pins!

check out pandacub's new glam rings signature collection

Although many of the items in my shop, pandacub, are adorable and probably more likely to appear on a little girl's head than on an adult's, I also want to share my love of fabric buttons with the stylish women out there.

Enter, the pandacub Glam Rings Signature Collection.

These fabric button rings are more "style" than "cute" and have lovely patterns and colours. At a crazily affordable price, you can mix and match these adjustable rings with your daily wardrobe!

Rings from the 2008 pandacub Glam Rings Signature Collection
Many of the rings in the Glam Rings Signature Collection are Limited Edition or One-of-a-Kind, which makes them even more special and collectable. Each ring comes with a cute little Signed by Me card which gives you more details about the ring (name, number and year).

Why not start your collection today? Or give one as a gift!

OMG! my first sale!

Yay! I'm so excited!

I ran a great SNS (Saturday Night Special) tonight and ended up with my first sale! *Doing a happy dance* The SNS was free worldwide shipping, plus if you spent $20 or more, you also got 15% off your order.

I sold these 2 pairs of bobby pins:


left: emeralds (by pandacub); right: swirling blossoms (by pandacub)

Ok, ok, I promise I won't be showing off every single item I sell, but this one's special since it's the first. :) You always remember your first!