Good Morning!

I meant to post this yesterday as part of the ongoing “Copper Hue’d Monday’s” series, but I was so wrapped up in looking at all the copper on Etsy, I ran out of time.

Enjoy!

Clicking on the image above will take you directly to my Etsy Treasurey, where the items are located.

What are your plans for Holiday decorations this year? Going with the old stand by? Or trying something new?

I’m going to feature the “Prairie Princess” design in today’s installment of “Story Behind the Design…”. This is actually a bit of an embarrassing story of a trip I made to Cody Wyoming April of 2008. Embarrassing, because I drank 1 to many “chardonnays” around people I’d never met, which I have a rule against doing, and I vaguely remember modeling my tee’s in front of a bar room full of people. But alas, I digress…

Prairie Princess is actually the product of a bar room conversation with two great gentleman from the great state of Wyoming. While I was in Cody, I was desperately trying to pimp UBetcha Apparel at the time, and if any of you know me, you’ll know I’m relatively reserved, so pimping my t-shirt line has been a challenge for me. However, every day I get better, and for this I’m thankful. I attended a c.d. release party in Cody in April of 2008 at the Irma Hotel. I knew NO ONE! Not a soul. Boy did I feel like more like an amazon woman then ever in my life. And me calling myself an Amazon woman is really just me saying I felt terribly out of place, tall, and freakish! Yike! So anyway, there I was, in all my Amazonish glory, trying desperately to chock down my nervousness and strike up a conversation with a group of people sitting at a table kind of in the corner of the room. One of the gentleman at the table was wearing a leather fringed frock coat and I thought maybe he was an extra for a movie or something. If I’d only known…

I take a deep breath, a swig of my crown and coke, and step towards the table…asking at the same time “Do you all mind if I join you?” Emphatic “Have a seat!” & “No we sure don’t mind” answers resound around the table and I sit down. A couple questions into the conversation I find out that one of the gentleman is Chris Turner (Ted Turners son…if my memory serves me right) and Ed Phillips who’s part of the Cody Nightly Rodeo. Great guys to strike a conversation up with. Chris Turner hosts a radio show on Saturday mornings from 9-10 in the Irma Hotel called Comfort Food. Unfortunately, when I looked the radio show up for this post, it looks like it’s on a hiatus. Which is much to bad, since it really is a funny show. I certainly hope they’ll be able to find sponsors again soon. So I chat with them during the launch party and get information about Cody and some great history.

The launch party sort of breaks up with everyone going to the bar area to listen to the artist sing some of his songs. I find myself seated at a table with several towns people and several people from the launch party…and they are all giving me ideas, advice and just generally helping me with UBetcha Apparel and ways to market the company. However, the drinks keep flowing. Crown and Coke number 2 goes down pretty easy, as do 3 and 4. So by the time number 4 is gone, I’ve got 2 more lined up, plus a shot. Now this post isn’t meant to be about my drinking habits, but frankly, when you have that many people buying you drinks, how do you turn them down? I’m not really certain how to politely not accept them, especially when they are already on the table in front of me. Somewhere along the line the word “Princess” is being used to describe me and women of the west and then “Prairie” is thrown in there and Ed comes up with “Prairie Princess”. I can’t remember the specifics, but I did write “Prairie Princess” down onto a business card, and that’s how it came into existence and onto a t-shirt, even though I can’t remember much else from that night. I do vaguely remember modeling the t-shirts for a bar room full of people…and changing shirts whilst in the bar……..

Shame on me!

UBetcha Apparel "Prairie Princess" tank with custom UBetcha Apparel tutu!

You can see and purchase the UBetcha Apparel “Prairie Princess” tee through the UBetcha Apparel website.

I’ve been debating with myself for the better part of a week which design I should start the “Story Behind the Design…” Series with. In an earlier post I gave a brief history on UBetcha Apparel and mentioned I’d write about each individual design, one at a time. Here’s the first installment.

It’s been a difficult task to choose one, mainly because as I think on each design, it brings up old memories and stories. Essentially that’s the purpose or thought behind each design. I want someone to look at one of the designs, and have one of those old memories come springing forward and for a moment, you get lost. That’s what telling stories does for each of us, in one way or another.

With this being said, I’m going to start with the “Cowboys Don’t Linedance, Buckaroos Won’t Even Watch!” Men’s T-Shirt. I’ve revamped this item. Initially there was an image that went along with it, but I’ve taken that out and went for only the words. I felt this was a more direct approach to a very serious topic.

When I first started dating my ex, back in 2001, he was working for a cutting horse trainer in the Bitterroot Valley near Corvallis Montana. Now, if any of you have been to the Bitterroot Valley you’ll know that there’s a pretty good buckaroo following in that area. And, if you are slightly aware of the difference between a cowboy and a buckaroo, you’ll get the underlying meaning of this design. If not, it’s still pretty easy to understand the staunchness of a buckaroo. Not to say that they don’t have a good laugh, but there’s just some things you don’t do…Linedancing is one of them.

I spent quite a bit of time in the Bitterroot Valley that first summer we were dating. One night, a bunch of us went out to the Plumb Loco bar in Stevensville. Upon stepping foot in the bar, the ex turns around and walks back out. “wwwhhhhooooooBetcha! RT this for your chance to win with http://inaminiskirt.com. @UBetcha_Apparel #trickortweet” I take a peek inside and notice they are line dancing and immediately understand why he’s leaving. Was pretty funny to see a group of buckaroos high tail it outta there. The whole time I’m watching this and hearing “Cowboys Don’t Linedance and Buckaroo’s won’t even watch!” They were pretty emphatic about it. Every time I think about that, it brings to mind that memory and I can see the disgust on their faces. Cracks me up!

July 1st you will be able to purchase both of these items from www.oubetcha.com.

As I’ve mentioned on a few other occasions, I own a company by the name of UBetcha. I just recently started adding the word “Apparel” because without it, who knows what UBetcha really is, and I wanted to have a direction with which to work from as well as towards. Who’s to say UBetcha won’t one day become something more, such as a company that also helps rodeo athletes find sponsors or get noticed, but for now, UBetcha is all about t-shirts.

Several years ago I worked for a ranch and home supply store, selling feed, tack, fencing, bolts, plants, jewelry, home furnishings and clothing. It was great and I loved every minute of it. I gained a ton of experience and know-how and I spent almost 4 years with this wonderful company. Many of you may know the company as Murdoch’s now, but then it was Ranch and Home Supply, Big R. Shortly before going on my fourth year of working there, I moved. To Sheridan Wyoming. The gentleman I was seeing applied for and was given a job with Padlock Ranch, just outside of Sheridan in a small town by the name of Dayton Wyoming.

Enter, my actual cowgirl year.

Prior to this time I’d spent a lot of time as a farmer/ranchers granddaughter. We didn’t use horses though, and my life seemed empty without them. Yes, we had horses for riding for fun, but honestly, if you don’t have a job to do on a horse, I didn’t think you could call yourself a cowgirl. I still don’t think I’m a cowgirl. I’m somewhere in-between. I’m getting off subject, so let me turn it back around.

During the year I spent working for the Padlock and dating this great guy I listened. Hard! Because as we all know, cowboys have some inventive and lesson teaching sayings. I’m not about to divulge any of them in this post, because that’s going to come up in later entries. I’m just stating a fact. Cowboy sayings are blurted out throughout the day while working cattle or riding or doing any number of other things a cowboy does. So anyway, I listened. And I started to write these sayings down. And for what reason? I wasn’t even sure at the time, I just knew I needed to get them on paper. So many of them were so true and memorable I couldn’t help but to remember them, but others were heard less often and I wanted to be sure to remember them.

After a year of writing these down and compiling quite a list, we moved! I cried! I bawled! I stomped my feet and cursed the system and questioned my faith and I got mad and I’m not even sure I want to go into all the other emotions and thoughts I had. We made the decision to move. I wasn’t happy to say the least, but figured I’d better follow since the U Haul was headed back to Montana.

Enter, my “I’m starting my own business” years.

So, upon arriving back in Montana, I have this huge list of cowboy sayings. What am I going to do with this? About this time I decided to start college, and work towards an A.S.S. degree in Graphic and Web Design. Two years wasn’t enough to really have a grasp on most of the information, but it got me into the door of a local design firm, and I’ve been there for the last two years. We moved back to Montana in 2005. It’s now 2009. There’s a lot of time in-between and I’m sure you’re wondering what happened. Well, I’m not telling. Lets just say a lot of changes, and I’m no longer seeing the same gentleman. Back to the list.

The creative director and his wife, of the firm I’m working at, own a silk screen press. It was sitting in the basement of the office we worked in, gathering dust. Back in May of 2008, they sold it to me and for the next 6 months I taught myself how to use the machine, how to burn screens, how to order t-shirts, how to clean screens….basically a crash course. I made a lot of mistakes, but I learned a ton. Those mistakes are what brought me to where I am today, working on creating a line of clothing, branded by me, screened by me, shipped by me, created by me and sold by me.

There I was, with this machine, and a book full of cowboy saying’s. What do I do now? At the time, I knew I wanted to start some kind of business dealing with clothing, I just wasn’t sure how to even get started. I’m still not sure. I’m still not even sure some days I’m started or moving forward. I’m still learning. About that time, I was joking with a friend of mine about starting a screen printing company and I was really trying to search for a name. One day, during a light-hearted phone conversation with my friend, he happened to utter the words, “O YOU BETCHA!” and a light went off. Why not? I mean, there are crazier names out there for companies, and frankly, UBetcha sticks with a person. We all say it at some point or another and we all laugh when we hear it. UBetcha reminds me of a “go-to-attitude” and it’s bold and full of attitude, but at the same time can be made classy, sassy and utterly feminine. It just works!

Attitude? UBetcha!