Scraps and Tidbits and Spreadsheets

At 1:30 in the morning I was up thinking about whether this particular red and gold ribbon trim I have would coordinate with this black and cream and gold material I'm currently working with. I almost got out of bed to check. But thought better of it and rolled over.


Then I was awake at 6:15am, a usually unheard of hour for me, calculating in my head the square inches of a yard of material and exactly how many square inches there are one of the bags I am making right now. What I was really working on was...what percentage of 1 yard of material was I using to make this bag. I suppose to be perfectly honest I was also calculating if a yard of material costs $20.00 am I charging enough to recover cost and make a profit to boot? I'm quickly becoming the material snob and love love love these high end decorator materials.

I couldn't stand it I hopped out of bed and grabbed a calculator. I distinctly remember my ultra bright engineer father trying to explain to me why I should give a rat's ass about anything that smelled remotely mathematical (by the way I had to spell check that word, that's how pathetic I am I can't even spell mathematical) in 9th grade. Oh, now I get it. Calculating square inches = width x depth. Add up pieces and divide by or into 1944 square inches since I can't ever remember but I know the right one when I see it...and presto you get the percentage of 1 yard of material you are using to make said handbag. Although, that is if you are using one piece of material that costs one price. Uh uh, scroll down at this site...I like color. Lots of color and texture and ribbons, and fringe. I like lots of fringe. I was sitting up in bed with the pillows propped up banging away at the solar calculator telling myself I would remember these numbers and there was no need to get up again for a pencil and paper. It is now 4:27pm and I can't remember even one calculation.


Enter the spread sheet. Thank goodness I passed 9th grade math by the skin of my teeth and went on to graduate from a decent state university, albeit without much math in my major, and to score a job with the biggest and bluest of all corporate mogols in my late 20's and early 30's. Want to know why? They had spread sheets there at big blue. I was simply forced to use them. I grumbled and whined at the time, somewhat similar to my 9th grade moaning for my father...but now I'm groovin' on my little grossly simplistic Excel sheet telling me if I am anywhere close to making anything close to the shade of black with Pink Evita.

Why all the middle of the night numerical antics? As of yesterday I have 4 definite and 2 probable Pink Evita "Design Your Own" purse parties booked for this fall. That started me thinking, I better get my groove on and know what the heck I am doing. Beyond playing with my beloved scraps of material mixed with fluffy trims on the sewing room floor while the baby sleeps.

Then again, I could keep track the same way I do with the household check book and go with my gut and spend the rest of my time creating this.
Denial is ultimately a good thing for the human psyche, yes?