An Amy Butler Paper Pieced Ceramic Coaster--Tada!!!

Thanks to Karin's fabulous idea in the previous post, I made my first paper pieced ceramic coaster tonight using all leftover Amy Butler scraps from previous projects. I love how it turned out! I also love that it's entirely made of scrap paper and that each one will be truly unique in that regard.

Yippee!

I'm stumped, can't think

Those of you who frequent my Etsy shop know that I really try to scrapbook and craft in a "green" way and use as many scraps as possible. I now have a whole pile of 1 inch strips of patterned paper that are left over from making my blank notecard sets. I've thought of somehow weaving them into something, but I have no idea what to make. I've thought of a paper strip collage background for a card, altered canvas, etc.

Anyone have any creative ideas for these cute strips of paper? I can always save them to use on the occasional card, but there has to be something really cute and clever out there for these little papers! Help! :)

Blog Giveaway Winner--Christopher and Tia!

Please email me your address, so I can get your dry erase tile set out to you. I hope you love it!

Thanks again, everyone, for the feedback and positive comments this past week. I really appreciate your help!

Order your Christmas Countdown Calendars

I just made my first few Christmas Countdown Calendars last night, and I'm starting to take orders for these. I have a few craft shows coming up, and I really hope these will be a hit! Kids love the tactile movement of taking the number off each day and counting down to 1. Countdown calendars are also available for Halloween, Wedding, Birthday, Disney, and others. I love custom orders and will gladly personalize these or customize the colors to your decor!

Order your Christmas Countdown Calendar before October 1st and get 15% off as a blog reader special! Just mention "blog" in the notes to seller.

New luggage tags!

I've been working on personalized luggage tags for my Etsy shop and upcoming craft fairs. Right now, I have Amy Butler,

a few travel themed sets, some for kids,

and random ones. They're turning out really cute (IMO). Your choice of ribbon or cord to tie and your personalization info. on the back. These are a unique way to find your luggage, carry on bags, diaper bags, bowling bags, backpacks for the kids, etc.!

Friday Favorites--Etsy Seller: Simplysupplies

Since I'm in the process of cleaning and organizing, I thought I'd tell about one of my favorite Etsy supply sellers and a few of her items:

Simplysupplies luggage tags (can't wait to use these and make a few Amy Butler luggage tags!):



Simplysupplies metal tins (using these to make tooth fairy tins!):


Did I mention that she's amazing to work with and ships really quickly? She's great and definitely one of my favorite sellers.

My Craft Room is About to Grow Legs and Walk Away!

Seriously, it's in desparate need of cleaning today. Every surface is covered with some sort of project that I'm in the middle of either for a custom order or for an upcoming craft show. My poor hubby tried to work from home some last night and had to literally push things aside to get some space on the desk for his laptop. So.....I need to seriously clean and organize today.

I swear, I really do this every few weeks or so, but then I start new projects and it just piles up again. My rationale, aka excuse, is that I'm the most creative when I have everything at hand and can just work w/out worry about the mess. LOL--sounds good, right?

Is there anyone else out there like me who does not put things away as they go? Someone else who works in "creative chaos" as I like to call it.

P.S.--I did take pictures this morning before I started cleaning, so there will be before and after pictures at some point. Not sure I'll post or not unless it will motivate someone else!

Miscellaneous Ramblings for Wednesday

1. My husband takes some amazing pictures and has decided to open his own Etsy shop w/ some of his best pictures, both whimsical and beautiful landscape shots. I'm hoping to get this up and running in the next few days after I research it a bit more.

2. My daughter isn't letting me work on crafts during naptime lately, so my productivity is way down. :(

3. My dry erase tile set giveaway is still going strong! You've got until Friday to leave a comment on one of the blog posts about tiles!

4. Ceramic tiles have now officially taken over my kitchen table. :)

5. Look for a big sale to be posted on my blog for my one year Etsyversary--coming Oct. 1st!!

New and in Color!!!

After listening to the popular demand for color in the earlier comments, I came up with these new dry erase tiles IN COLOR!! I absolutely love snowmen anyways, so I love how the snowman family tile turned out. I'll actually have to make several of those, I'm sure, because I'll hate to give them up! Let me know what you think. I hope to list these tomorrow in my Etsy shop.

New listings in my shop! Feedback Please--New Giveaway! :)

I would love some feedback on my new items. Just listed some dry erase ceramic tiles w/ easel and marker, more ceramic coaster sets, and I plan to list ceramic tile magnets very soon. I have some that are the small tiles w/ paper for the magnets, and others are tumble tiles that I've stamped various designs on for magnets. If you haven't been to my Etsy shop in a few days, be sure to check it out as there are new listings and more to come!



Anyone have any feedback? I'm really hoping these go over well, so I'd appreciate any ideas--what designs/ styles you'd like to see, ways to improve the listings, etc.

I'll pick one lucky name on Friday from the comments in this post to receive a free dry erase tile, easel and marker set!

Thanks a bunch!

Dora! Dora! Dora!

My little girl got to meet Dora today at the Columbus Zoo, and she was literally in awe to be in her presence. It was so cute! She hugged and kissed Dora, gave her high fives, then kept going back to her. We literally had to drag her away kicking and crying from Dora. :(

Yes, our family has been sucked into the gigantic media empire that is Dora the Explorer.

Belated Friday Favorites

So the power was only out until Monday evening, but we decided to stay at my parent's house for a few extra days. My Aunt passed away after an extended illness while we were there. :(

It's been a very long week, but we're home now and trying to get back to normal.

I'm choosing to just list a few of my favorite online bargain sites this week. Here's my belated list of Friday favorites:

www.craigslist.org ( love to look for garage sales, toddler clothing and toys, etc. here!)

www.thegrocerygame.com (just finished my $1 trial period and saved a ton on groceries over the last month. It's becoming a challenge now to save more and more this week. LOL)

www.babycheapskate.com (deals on diapers, clothing, and more for little ones)

www.afullcup.com (mainly just look for CVS and Target printable coupons and deals here)

Hope this list helps a few people save some $$ in the upcoming weeks!

Blown Away -- Literally!

It's not very often that we see a hurricane in central Ohio (more like never!). However, the remnants of Hurricane Ike did considerable damage, and most schools are still closed again today after Sunday's wind storm. I've never seen or heard winds like that before! I think they said they were upwards of 70 or 80mph sustained winds for hours on Sunday, and my house lost power Sunday evening after a day of constant flickering on and off. We're currently staying at my parents house (with power), so I will update my blog and Etsy shop more when I return tomorrow.

Friday Favorites from Etsy!

Here are some of my favorite things from Etsy:

This adorable little pumpkin hat from Etsy Seller: MountainEagleCrafter


These adorable baby shoes using Amy Butler fabrics from Etsy Seller: GraciousMay



Beautiful Prints from Etsy Seller: jellybeans



and while I think it's going to be a blow-out game tomorrow night versus USC (not in our favor!), GO BUCKS!!!

Here are the pictures!

Little one is cooperating, so here are the photos of the transfers. I can't wait to use these! Did I mention they are GLOW IN THE DARK?!

How cool is that?

OMG!! Too cute!

I just got the most adorable Glow in the Dark transfers for Halloween, and I can't wait to make some onesies and toddler tshirts with them!!!

Anyone need some Halloween onesies or tshirts??? Anyone?

I'll try and get pictures tonight, but the sayings are:

"Too Cute to Spook" w/ a cat and spider w/ web
"Trick or Treat" w/ 3 cute trick or treaters
"Pumpkin" w/ a pumpkin picture
"My First Halloween" w/ a cute kid in a pumpkin costume
"Spooky" w/ 2 cute bats
"My Cuteness is what really counts" w/ a kid in a vampire/ count costume

1 Week, 2 Days, and Counting...and other ramblings

until my first craft show of the season! I've been busy lately making new paper bag albums, more notecard sets, more tiles, and generally more of everything to have on hand. I will gradually start to add some of it to my Etsy shop as I'm able to, but I'm hoping to have a strong show next weekend.

It looks like my blog readers are Amy Butler fans!! I've listed two of the sets on Etsy already w/ plans to list more. While the coasters are a paper craft to me, I'm not sure everyone will see them that way. I'm thinking of possibly opening a second Etsy shop for paper craft/ home decor items (ceramic coasters, altered picture frames, etc.).

What do you think? Are they fine in my current shop and look like they fit in, or should I open a second shop?

Amy Butler Ceramic Coasters are here!

I've made a few sets now, and I love how they are turning out! I have all of the Belle and Sola papers, and I'm hoping to get my hands on some Lotus papers that would work for coasters. I'd love to hear some feedback on the first four sets (photographed before sealing to prevent glare)!

If you'd like to order a custom set of these coasters, please let me know, and I'll set up your custom listing on Etsy. :) I should be able to start listing these sets later tonight or tomorrow.

Traci

Yucky day outside today

We went through a really dry spell in Ohio over the summer, so we truly need the rain. However, it's so yucky, gray and wet looking outside today. I'd love to curl up in bed and read a book, but we've got things to do today.

Rain, rain, go away
Come again another day!

The weather's just not doing much for my motivation so far this morning. Anyone with me?

Just had to do a little virtual celebration dance!

I just got a few custom coaster orders! Yippee!!!

I'm working on some more designs for upcoming craft shows and to list on Etsy, so keep an eye out for Amy Butler coasters, as well as more. I have some beautiful paper that I can't wait to use!

A late version of Friday Favorites

I've spent the last year really trying to create a greener lifestyle for our family. Here are some of my favorites from the past few months:

Mini crochet carrot play food from Etsy Seller-SugarCake

These reusable mopping pads from Etsy Seller- MayberryCreations. They fit on the end of my Swiffer perfectly for cleaning the floors. No more disposable Swiffer cloths--yippee!!! Love these!

So many great things from Etsy Seller- giggle47! I have several dishcloths, as well as the grocery bag holder, and I love them!

Handmade Conversation

I recently had a conversation with my 28 year old brother about handmade items as he was giving me opinions on some of my things. I love his opinion because he really gives it to me straight and is very honest about what he likes and dislikes. I told him he always sounds so surprised in his emails to me when he really likes something that I just made. His reply was that they look nice and professional, not handmade. (his words, not mine)

What do people really think? I'm not trying to start a debate here, but it really got me thinking about how people view handmade items. They're not produced on a major assembly line by a machine, so there will be slight variances and differences among pieces. Is it a bad thing for an item to be viewed as "handmade" vs. nice and professional? I'm sure that there is a market out there for both, and I know that plenty of people go to craft shows and such looking for unique handmade items.

Anyways, our conversation really made me think as I prepare for upcoming fall craft shows. Do people really value the fact that my items come from a stay-at-home-Mommy who works during naptime and bedtime and tries to make high-quality items? Hmmm....something to think about.

I'm squealing with delight here!

I just started making ceramic coasters, and I absolutely love them! So far, I've made some OSU Buckeyes, fall/ seasonal, a local school, and Breast Cancer Survivor. I plan to make Amy Butler coasters, as well as a few other designs for some upcoming craft shows and to list on Etsy. I'm now accepting custom orders on these to get ready for the holiday season. Trust me, I have more paper than I know what to do with, so I can customize these to your style/ color scheme/ favorite team, etc. They are 4 for $12 and are sealed to protect against water. They also have little "feet" to protect your furniture from scratches and come gift-wrapped w/ ribbons to make for easy gift-giving. They make excellent gifts to have on hand for weddings, graduations, housewarming, teachers, last minute Christmas gifts, etc. I love them! Convo me through Etsy or email me to place a custom order.

Looking for Me?

The EtsyMom virtual trunk show was so much fun tonight! I loved finally "meeting" some of the moms on the team and learning more about their shops and creative processes. While I think my own things are pretty cute, here are some of my favorites from the other creative mamas:

The fully insulated lunch bags from EtsyMom naturallyfelt:

These leaf print tshirts and pillows from EtsyMom sweet3leafprints:

And finally, these adorably comfy looking slippers from EtsyMom thecrocodilerock:

Just search Etsy for etsymomcheer to see lots of other great items and EtsyMoms!

More Info...

Get a jump on your holiday shopping with the Fall into Holiday Cheer Trunk Show the wonderfully talented Etsymom Street Team Members are hosting this Thursday, Sept. 4th at 7 pm in the Etsy Virtual Labs. Come find out what inspires the beautiful handcrafted artistry of this dedicated group of moms in business. Each Etsymom participant will display images of their work, share about their creative process and answer questions. Don't miss this first-time event for Etsymoms and an opportunity to buy some incredible handmade goods

EtsyMom Virtual Trunk Show Tomorrow!! 9/04

The Etsymom team is having a Fall into Holiday Cheer virtual trunk show! Come see what inspires our wonderful creations and check out our latest goodies! It will be held this Thursday, Sept 4th at 7pm EST in the virtual lab!

Not sure exactly when my time slot will be, but I'm very excited to showcase my shop, as well as some new fall, Halloween, and Christmas items!

A New Look Coming Soon!

Now that I've been blogging for almost a year, I've decided to change it up a bit. I primarily blog about my business, things that are coming up, and on the rare occasion, my family. I've decided to mix it up more, maybe feature other artists, share some of my favorite things, and try to blog more often. This new look will be coming later today and hopefully will have pictures of my September Scrapbooking Kits of the Month that feature Heidi Grace fall papers!