Well, not surprisingly, it’s been a busy week since my (super exciting) new shop opened last week! I’ve been very grateful for the positive feedback and encouragement I’ve heard, so thank you all.

The most interesting thing, and the major reason I wanted to open a shop with a good variety of things in it, has been discovering what people like best. There’s been some good interest in pillows and aprons, which makes me very happy, but the zipper pouches seem to be in the highest demand. That came as a surprise to me, although it shouldn’t have — I can never get enough bags and wallets and purses, either.

So the good news on that front is that I have lots of new zipper pouches coming up. I’ve ordered lots more zippers, and in the next few weeks you can expect more bags, wallets and purses and carry-alls in the shop. And here on the blog, of course.

But not today. Today I’m talking about snaps.

Last week I started hammering snaps onto everything, and I’m having a lot of fun with it. Here’s a little coin purse I made from some beautiful blue-gray vintage suede, it was the first snap-item I made in years:

I’m really happy with it. Cute, simple, and keeps my coins out of my own zipper wallet, where I’m forever fishing around for them, making cashiers impatient.

On Friday we were going to a party, and I wanted a little purse for just my wallet and phone, so I put together this super-simple fold-over purse from the same suede, with a bright red zipper. I love the contrast of the red on the suede, and it’s a little disappointing not to be able to see that pop of color when the purse is closed (as much as I love the fold-over+snap.

And of course, my partner’s handmade rope forms a thin, lightweight and surprisingly comfortable strap. Note that even though I made this purse specifically for me, I still ended up having to shorted the strap with a knot. Sigh.

What do you think? Should I add some snap-closure-items to the shop? What do you love more, zips or snaps?