Marisa Edghill « oh my! handmade goodness

Marisa Edghill

DIY: Teacup Shaped Envelopes

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Last week, I introduced you to Tara Bliven of Ephemera Press and her Elevated Envelope Exchange. This week, I thought I’d introduce you to my elevated envelopes!

The Elevated Envelope Exchange connects you with other creative souls – you create and send beautiful mail out into the world, and in return, your mailbox fills with awesome envelopes! What I love about this project, other than connecting with others, is that it’s an opportunity to try something new and to challenge yourself. As Tara says “You’ve gotta BRING IT! Anyone creative can join, and all confidence levels are welcome… But, you do have to be willing to put in some serious creative effort and work hard on it.”

So, I challenged myself, and these teacup-shaped envelopes were the result. And I love them so much, I thought I’d share how I made them with you! I think that they’d make pretty cute invites to a tea party, if you’re the type to engage in parties of that sort (I sure am!) And, if you’re not into tea, take it as a little inspiration that with a little creativity and some quality time with your sewing machine, you can make an envelope in any shape you please!

How To Make Teacup Envelopes

Materials:

paper for envelopes (card stock / scrapbook paper – I used the backside of an old calendar)
template <–click here to download teacup template
markers / paint / your desired decorating medium
twine or string
brightly coloured 3″x3″ origami paper
washi tape
small glassine bags (I used these ones from The Wrappery)

Tools:

scissors
sewing machine
small ( 1/16″) hole punch
bone folder
craft knife

Let’s start by making the teabag-shaped notes to go inside the envelopes!

Fold your note into a size small enough to slip inside the glassine bag. Place the glassine bag (with note inside) so that the back is facing you. Fold down the corners of the open end, forming a point. Fold down the point (see middle image above for clarification.)

Cut a piece of twine about 6″ long. Take your piece of twine and glassine bag and head to the sewing machine. Tuck one end of the twine under the folded point of the glassine bag, then bring the twine up and over so that it extends over the flap and straight out. Using your machine, sew over the folded end and twine. (I went back and forth a couple times to make sure it was secure.)

To make the tag for the teabag, start with a piece of 3″x3″ origami paper in your desired colour. Cut in half – it will now be 1.5″x3″; then fold in half. Use a fine marker / pen to write the recipient’s name and/or any other message you desire on the tag. I drew a double border on both sides, wrote the recipient’s name on one side and the symbol for tea on the other.

Use your small hole punch to punch a hole in the centre of the fold (if you don’t have one, you can simply cut a slit large enough for the twine to fit through). Feed the end of the twine through the hole in the tag. Use a small piece of washi tape to tape into place on the inside of the tag. At this point you may need to trim the twine to your desired length.

Onto the Teacups!

Trace the teacup template onto your desired paper. For each envelope, you will need one front piece (with lid) and one back piece (no lid). You can cut out the teacups before or after decorating, whichever works better for you. In terms of paper, you can use plain paper, as I did, if you want to spend some quality time decorating. Or why not try cutting them out of some pretty scrapbook paper?

Decorate as desired. I used blue watercolour paint on my envelopes. A solid blue wash for the lids, roses on the fronts, and stripes or dots on the backs. After painting and cutting out the teacup shapes, I accented the lid, rim, bottom and handle with a paint marker in metallic gold.

Once your teacup is looking all pretty (and dry), head back to the sewing machine. Place your two teacup shapes back to back and sew around the edge – I think it looks great with a bold thread colour, but use whatever you have / whatever you are comfortable with.

Use your bone folder and a ruler to score and then fold the envelope flap over. You will need to mark and then cut a slit in the back of the envelope for the tab on the flap to slide into. Use your craft knife to do this, but first ensure you slip a piece of cardboard inside the envelope so that you have a surface to cut into!

Slip your teabag note inside the envelope, close the flap and seal with a small piece of washi tape. Make sure the string of the teabag hangs over the edge so that the name tag is visible. If you want to mail your teacups, make sure you slip them inside an outer envelope – I used A7 vellum envelopes.

Hope you find an occasion to craft up some teacup envelopes of your own!

Are you inspired by The Elevated Envelope Exchange? Do you ever send or receive mail art?

Huge thanks to Jessika for putting together the Teacup Envelope Template for us! Now go make some pretty mail already!

Meeting The Makers: Tara of Ephemera Press

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

I’m thrilled that Tara Bliven of Ephemera is joining us on OMHG today. I first came across Ephemera last summer when I caught wind of Tara’s passion project, The Elevated Envelope, and I’ve kept her on my radar ever since. Because – free flowing letterpress, gorgeous calligraphy and the promise of a mailbox full of art, not bills – what’s not to love?!! Plus Tara’s work is full of character, colour, and plenty of love. Just how we like it around here! I invited Tara to swing by and tell us about her business, inspirations and why she wants to inspire to world (or at least YOU) to step away from our computers, get our hands dirty and send some mail already! Without further ado, let’s meet Tara:

Hi Tara! Could you tell us a little bit about yourself and Ephemera?

I live and work in a fixer-upper on a wooded acre about 20 minutes outside of Seattle with my awesome husband, Dave, and our 2 fluffy gray cats, Henry and Clementine. I started Ephemera in 2006, and make a lot of custom stationery – everything from personalized note cards (my favorite) to creative business stationery and wedding invitations. I also do calligraphy (mostly pointed pen), and a lot of my work features my own hand lettering. Lately I’ve changed it up a bit – focusing on projects that are FUN (rather than formal) and feature only my own design and illustration. My “official” business name is now Ephemera – Liberated Letterpress. I like it when things are not so serious ;)

What inspires you?

Well I definitely feel inspired by all the beautiful mail in my mailbox these days! There are too many ideas landing on my doorstep. Literally. Other than that, traveling always inspires me – I haven’t done as much of it in the last couple of years as I would like, but even a quick weekend trip really refreshes me and allows new ideas to pop into my head. I get inspired by nature.

With running your own business, there are always highs and lows. What do you love / not love about being in business with yourself?

I do mostly love it – the autonomy, the ability to say no to work that’s not a good fit. I like being able to just decide things. With that said, it is a lot of hats to wear, and I’m not an expert at everything (shocking!), so I don’t know if I’m deciding the right thing a lot of the time!

What is the most important thing you’ve learnt so far in running your own creative business?

Working by yourself is hard. Nothing exists in a vacuum. And you’ll go insane without the occasional happy hour. So don’t do it! When you don’t have coworkers, you have to find a way to make a team. Reach out to other creative people in your industry. The Seattle wedding industry happens to be very warm and fuzzy, so I’m friendly with not only other letterpress / paper people, but photographers, florists, etc. Find SMART people you LIKE, and meet up regularly to talk shop or just grab lunch. You’ll be amazed at the ideas that flow and the doors that open. (Not to mention the friends you’ll make.) And when you talk with someone about a crazy idea you have (oh, like The Elevated Envelope!), and they get excited and give you feedback, it propels you to move forward with it and keeps you accountable.

Clockwise from top left: Teresa Banman, Tara Bliven, Debbie Osborn, Tara Bliven

What is The Elevated Envelope project? What inspired you to start it?

The Elevated Envelope is an artistic snail mail exchange that harkens back to those olden times when you had something better than bills in your mailbox. Remember that??? Anyone creative who feels they can “bring it” can sign up to swap beautiful envelopes with like-minded strangers all over the world. It’s a ton of fun!

What inspired The Elevated Envelope? That’s a story that could get long. Suffice it to say there’s a certain envelope postmarked 1995 that’s pretty much my prized possession. You can read the whole story here if you have a little time. (It’s a good story.) Basically, the significance of that envelope, combined with me missing all my old pen pals, and the fact that I love art and calligraphy all swam around in my head until The Elevated Envelope popped out.

It must be an amazing experience to connect with people around the world via mail art (and to have your mailbox full of pretty mail!). For you, what is the greatest takeaway from the Elevated Envelope experience?

Yes, it is really awesome to get such beautiful mail (and so much of it – there are 255 people in the current exchange)!

I’d say the greatest take-away is that it gets people to do something different or out of their comfort zone. Yes, I get a lot of sign-ups (and impressive envelopes) from serious artists or designers, but it’s equally thrilling to get someone who in their “about me” states, “I’ve never done anything like this before…” I mean, an envelope can be pretty tiny. It’s not this huge commitment. It’s an easy way to try something out. All those arty projects you have pinned on Pinterest? Step away from the computer and actually give one of them a go – but just small. On an envelope. Then slap a stamp on there and drop it into a mailbox. Send it out into the world – that’s an important step. Doesn’t matter if it’s to a stranger on your swap list, or a friend you’ve known for 20 years – something about the sending makes what you did become Real. And then it’s addictive. What else can I do?

Could you share your favourite envelope (or envelopes) received from the project. What do you love about it/them?

I really shouldn’t pick favorites, and I couldn’t even if I wanted to! But here are 3 from our current exchange that I’m digging especially at the moment:

A) Bedfordshire Lace Envelope by Kayte Judge from Bedford, UK. This one is special because of all the ways she found to use one piece of lace to create different images, using different techniques (photocopying, sunprints, hand-cut linoprints) – and because all of them were done for this project. She sought out the help of an actual lace-maker and local printmaker. Just for The Elevated Envelope (which is, really, for no reason at all). That’s just kind of fantastic.

B) Garden-Inspired Watercolor Envelope by E.M. Corsa from North Carolina. This is a reproduction of an 1800’s garden map that was then turned into an envelope, and has a beautiful moth watercolor atop it. I love the tiny detailing on the sunshine (gold thread as the rays). But the most incredible part about it is that it’s a series. She painted eleven different watercolors of creatures from her garden for each person on her list. Eleven.

C) Springtime Doodled Envelope by Julie Goette from Missouri. This is a favorite because of its simplicity. Obviously Julie has talent, but what can be done with various Micron pens and markers can be really quite something. Start here.

Visit Tara over at Ephemera for lovely letterpressed goods & custom calligraphy stamps, check out The Elevated Envelope blog for mail art inspiration or connect via Facebook and Twitter. Interested in the next round of The Elevated Envelope? You can read all about the project here! Sign ups are ongoing, but the next round begins June 1st.

DIY: Crepe Paper Flowers

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Crepe paper has always been one of those materials I’ve coveted from afar. It’s not really something you come across in a standard Canadian craft shop, so I had never had a chance to try making with it. Needless to say, when the opportunity arose to make something out of Carte Fini Italian crepe paper came up, I was super excited about it!

Of course, crepe paper in hand, I knew that, while I could dream up something else, all I really wanted to make was flowers! And this gorgeous weighty paper is simply perfect for it. But, having seen multiple tutorials online for crepe paper flowers, I wanted to give you something a little different – so I crafted up a flat version. Less realistic than the typical ones made with floral wire and tape, but oh so pretty nonetheless.

But before we dive in, a note on the paper, because it really does deserve it. The Carte Fini rolls are huge (50 x 250cm), even after days of making flowers I feel like I haven’t even put a dent in them. And the paper is luscious – it has a really lovely weight to it and heaps of stretch which makes shaping quite easy. I’m definitely trying to come up with an ~~excuse~~ occasion which merits adding more colours to my new crepe paper stash!

Ready? Let’s make flowers!

For each flower, you will need:

2 Colours of Crepe Paper
Card Stock in a similar colour
Glue
Scissors

1. Gather your supplies. Cut 3 strips of crepe paper approximately 1 – 1 1/2″ (25 – 35mm) wide from the desired petal colour for your flower. Cut one piece of crepe paper approximately 3″ (75mm) x 5″ (125mm) out of the desired stamen colour for your flower.

2. Using the ridges in the Carte Fini crepe paper as a guide, cut the strips into smaller pieces. Discard any odd-sized end pieces. You should have approximately 27 rectangles of crepe paper.

3. Fold each small rectangle of crepe paper in half lengthwise (so that the crepe runs up and down) and cut your petal shape.

4. Cut an approximately 3″ (75mm) circle from the card stock. You are now ready to start assembling your flower.

5. Using your fingers, shape each petal by pulling gently outwards. The crepe paper has a lot of stretch in it, but if you pull too far you will lose all shape. For pointy petals, try pinching the tips to accent the point. For inner petals, try curling the petal inwards by rolling it around your finger as you stretch. Glue the first petal to the outside edge of the card stock circle.

6. Glue each petal so that it slightly overlaps the one before. A note on glue – I found that a craft glue stick was better suited to this project than a liquid glue. Liquid glue will saturate the card stock and the paper will buckle while drying.

7. As you glue the petals around the outside of the card stock circle, you want to make a subtle spiral rather than a circle. When you get to the end of the first layer of petals, the final petal should be closer to the centre of the circle than the first one.

8. Continue shaping and gluing petals around the card stock circle in a spiral to create a second layer.

9. After 2 layers of petals, you may want to cut a small section off the bottom of the remaining petals (about 1/8″ or 5mm) before shaping and sticking them. This will give a shorter and more defined centre to your flower.

10. Once all petals are attached (and you might not have room for all of them), it’s time to shape the centre or stamen of the flower. Fold your piece of crepe paper in half lengthwise and then pull firmly to stretch. Snip along the folded edge, creating a fringe.

11. Roll the fringe tightly. When the stamen is as large as you’d like it, cut off the extra piece of crepe paper. Add a dab of glue to the end of the roll to secure.

12. Use hot glue (or another strong glue) to attach the stamen to the centre of your flower. Once dry, gently push the stamen open as little or as much as you want.

That’s it!

By varying the shape of the petals and the size of the stamen, you can create a variety of different flowers. I find that cutting petals with points or scallops tend to result in more interesting finished flowers than simple round petals.

So, you’ve made a bevy of beautiful flowers – now what?! What I love about a flat flower like these is that they can be used in so many ways. Try making a floral wall installation for a party, photo backdrop or just for fun. Glue hair clips or pins to the back and place them on the table at your next event – your guests can get in the festive mood by wearing a flower in their hair or pinned to their dress. Or why not use a paper flower instead of a bow on a beautifully wrapped gift. So lovely!

Have you worked with crepe paper before? What do you like to make with it?

What would you use these crepe paper flowers for?

Lovely Things to Make, Bake or Buy this Valentine’s Day!

Friday, February 3, 2012

Our little household gets all confused when Valentine’s Day rolls around. While Valentine’s Day is celebrated on February 14th in Canada, it works a little differently in Japan (where my husband and I met and married) as women give gifts to men on February 14th and the men reciprocate on White Day – March 14th. And in Brazil, where my husband is from, Dia dos Namarados (Lover’s Day) is sometime in June. So, we’ve never really worked out which Love day to celebrate. And, to be honest, I’m okay with that. I’m not really a wine-me-dine-me-buy-me-roses-or-else kind of girl. In fact, my ideal Valentine’s Day would probably include a mailbox full of handmade cards (feel free to send me one!) and a chocolate-covered marshmallow heart (or two). Oh, and a cupcake!

That being said, I can definitely appreciate the abundance of Bee Mine and I Choo-Choo-Choose you puns, and over-abundance of pink and red hearts on everything! It taps into my innate love for cute & lovely things.

Now, I can admit, I may have been guilty of being a Valentine’s Day grump in the past, (surely a result of giant bouquets of flowers and life-sized heart-wielding teddy bears flaunted around high school hallways every February 14th) but I have learnt that holidays like Valentine’s Day are only miserable if you let them be. (Kinda like how New Year’s Eve is always a let down?) So stop being a Valentine’s Day grinch! Instead use February 14th as an excuse to embrace over-the-top pink & red & hearts-all-over, to indulge in something decadent (preferably involving chocolate) and to treat yourself or someone you love to something special.

No special someone this Valentine’s Day? Breathe a sigh of relief (pressure to find that perfect gift/card is off) and eat that cupcake anyway, bake heart-shaped cookies to share with your workmates or craft up handmade cards to share with your single friends. I’ll bet they’ll love them!

Make Something Special

1. Valentine Popcorn Invitation – Eat Drink Chic / 2. Love Garland – This Is Glamorous

3. Sweet Straws – A Field Journal / 4. Giant Paper Rose – Green Wedding Shoes

5. Felt Heart Barrettes – The Purl Bee / 6. Je T’aime Coffee Cup Wrappers – Eat Drink Chic

7. Valentine Cards – Alisa Burke / 8. Love Tea Time – Rosaline

Bake Something Decadent

1. Cupid’s Arrow Cupcakes – Bakerella / 2. Conversation Heart Cookies – Martha Stewart

3. Valentine’s Day S’mores – Bird’s Party / 4. Gift Box Cake – Bakerella

5. Raspberry-Hazelnut Linzer Hearts – Babble / 6. Red Velvet Whoopie Pies – Annie’s Eats

7. Origami Heart Cupcake Toppers – Omiyage / 8. Valentine’s Sugar Cookies – Sweetapolita

Buy Something Lovely

1. Je T’aime Card – Popolo Press / 2. LOVE Print – Helen Dardik

3. Valentine Paper Dolls – Jordan Grace Owens / 4. Herkimer Diamond Ring – lumafina

5. You Are So Loved – Katie Daisy / 6. HELLO Print – Mengsel

7. Tiny Heart Studs – Rachel Pfeffer Designs / 8. For Like Ever – Super Rural

As for us, this Valentine’s Day is sure to be a quiet one. But there will be cupcakes!

How about you – Are you a Valentine’s Day lover or could you do without this holiday? Will you be doing anything special to celebrate this year?

2012: An OMHG Wishlist

Friday, January 13, 2012

“Wish” – Something Monumental

With a new year brings (hopefully) a new zest for life … and business!

This year, we vow, we will live bigger, shine brighter, make more, spend less, reinvent, redesign.

But, of course, that’s a lot to ask of ourselves. So in 2012, why not reach out for help when you need it? There are so many resources out there for small businesses – so many it can be pretty overwhelming to sift through it all and find exactly what you need to know.

Oh My! Handmade Goodness has grown into a wonderful resource for creative entrepreneurs – full of inspiration, useful tips, and support. Jessika, the contributors, and readers are bursting with practical know-how.

(read more…)

DIY Monogrammed Christmas Stockings

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

My favourite part of Christmas has always been stockings. Perhaps it’s because we always were allowed to open our stockings first growing up – waiting until after breakfast to tackle the bigger gifts under the tree.

There’s simply nothing better than falling asleep while the stockings hang empty and waking up to the magic of those same stockings overflowing. So much excitement found in the little treasures are stuffed inside. And, of course, you can’t forget the orange stuffed in the toe!

So, considering the love I have for this tradition, it is a little remiss of me to have not crafted up stockings for my husband and myself far sooner. I’ve been promising him a new set of handmade stockings for, I don’t know, probably 5 years now. Of course, I have a handmade one I’ve been using since childhood, but he’s been making do with one we drummed up from somewhere for his first Canadian Christmas four years ago. So, this, this was the year!

If you too are longing for a matching set of Christmas stockings, here’s how you go about making felt stockings. It’s really so simple and you don’t need to be a whiz with a sewing machine – in fact, you could stitch the whole thing by hand. And if you’re not into simple, don’t do simple. Add a monogram as we did or go wild with whatever you fancy. Take these bare bones and add flowers and sequins and fur trim and all the bells and whistles!

The fact is, as long as you have a stocking shape you love and some good quality felt, you’ll be able to whip up beautiful handcrafted stockings.

Speaking of felt, I used lovely merino wool blend felt from Benzies Bazaar. But if you’re looking for pure wool felt, I’ve also heard wonderful things about Felt on the Fly. Either way, you want some lovely thick felt – not the flimsy stuff you find at the big box craft stores.

So, without further ado, let’s get making!

You will need:

Felt in 2 or more colours (you’ll need a piece approximately 18″ x 18″ to make one stocking)
Scissors
Spray adhesive
Needle & thread / Sewing machine

Let’s get started:

1. Create a pattern or template for your stocking. I drew mine based on my ideal stocking shape and then cut it out of chipboard. Not sure how to start? Use an old Christmas stocking as a pattern, or find a template online.

2. Using your template, trace and cut 2 stocking shapes out of felt. Set aside.

3. To make the monogram, choose a font which you like and print off the desired letter in a large font size. For these stockings, I used Georgia in size 300 pt.

4. Carefully cut the letter out of the paper. I allowed a thin border all around the printed letter as I cut.

5. Spray the front of the paper letter with spray adhesive. Place face down on the back of the piece of felt you’ll be using as the main letter colour.

6. Carefully cut around the paper letter. I again allowed a thin border around the printed letter as I cut. Peel off the paper letter and trim any rough or jagged edges seen on the felt letter.

7. Pin the felt letter (white)to a piece of felt in the desired background / outline colour (red). Sew the letter to the background. I prefer to do this step by hand – but feel free to machine stitch if you prefer / feel confident with all those twists and turns!

8. Cut around the letter you’ve just sewn to the background, ensuring you leave the desired width of border / outline. I left a very narrow red outline – but you could definitely go thicker.

9. Pin the finished letter to the front piece of the stocking. Stitch around. I attached my letters by hand – but, again, this step could be done by machine.

10. Once the letter is attached to the front of the stocking, it’s time to sew! Pin the two sides of the stocking together, right sides out.

11. Stitch around the outside of the stocking, keeping an even seam allowance. Make sure you leave the top edge open – otherwise how will you get all those delicious goodies inside? Try using a piece of washi tape in a bright colour to mark your desired seam allowance if you have trouble following the marks on your machine. I find the bright colour really helps me stitch straight!

12. To make the hanging loop, cut a strip of felt in the desired colour. Firmly attach to the top corner of your stocking. If you’re worried about the loop stretching, make a reinforced loop by doubling the felt or use a piece of ribbon instead.

And that’s it! Your very own handcrafted felt stockings, ready to be hung & filled with all sorts of goodies come Christmas morn!

Are stockings a part of your holiday traditions? What do you hope to find in yours this year?

Looking for fun goodies to stuff in those stockings? Why not fill them with washi tape, origami paper & cute stationery? Omiyage is offering Oh My! Handmade Goodness readers 20% off until December 15th. Simply enter code OMHG20 during checkout.

OMHG Contributor Holiday Wishlist

Thursday, November 24, 2011

After all this talk about holiday season business, I thought it would be fun to switch gears and share some of the items on our wish lists this holiday season! I asked OMHG’s contributors what they’re hoping to unwrap this year. Here’s some (mostly) handmade goodies that we would love to receive as gifts. Hint hint!

SOURCES: Leather Triangle Necklace – ulala / Hemp Pants – Sweetgrass / Stockholm Messenger Bag – Ikabags / elde handknit accessories / Adventure Sticks – Prunella / Across the canal – Laura Amiss / Custom Family Tree – cozyblue / Earth Girl print – Little Ladies by J / Doodle Necklace – Tickette / The Hostess cart – Society Social / Soy Candle – Luminology / Kokeshi Recipe Cards – Creative Mama / Fox Necklace – Odette / Modern Stripe Vase – dahlhaus/ Fused Glass Pendant – Gloria Lynn Glass / Personalized Notes & Calling Cards – Rifle Paper Co. / Baby Blanket & Burp Cloths – Organic Quilt Company / Custom Initial Necklace – S.D. Marie / Quartz Terrarium – Score + Solder / Geometric Leather Jewelry – boo + boo factory / Jon Klassen prints / Stand Mixer Poster – Oh, Dear Molly / Hand Drawn Garden Plate – ecdesign / Village Wall Plate – Zuppa Atelier / Skipping Bunny Plate – The Storybook Rabbit / Mr Raccoon Plate – jimbobart

CONTRIBUTORS: Kristen Hodges – Ahoy Graphics / April MacKinnon – Anointment Natural Skin Care / Arianne Foulks – Aeolidia / Jacqui Miyabayashi – Mee a Bee / Isa Maria Seminega – Noisette Marketing / Sarah Toms – sarah + abraham / Tracey Selingo – Twisted Pinky / Joy Charde – Creative Mamma / Stacy Altiery – InkSpot Workshop / Nicole Morell – Honeybunch / Cam Pietralunga / Laura Simms – Create as Folk / Allisa Jacobs / Michelle Vackar – Hi Mamma / Grace Kang – Retail Recipes / Meg Bartholomy – olliegraphic / Zoe Rooney – A Quick Study / Jena Coray – Miss Modish / Marisa Edghill – Omiyage.ca / Jessika Hepburn – Oh My! Handmade Goodness

Pin & Win! The Pinterest Challenge Redux

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Since October is all about challenging your creativity, Jessika and I thought it was time to bring back the Pinterest Challenge!

Back in June, I issued myself a challenge – A Pinterest Challenge – and invited you to join me. It’s a challenge to try new things and to actually do something with all those pins you’re collecting on your Pinterest boards. To actually get inspired by the inspiration boards you’re curating. As Pinterest gains popularity, and the handmade community grapples with the ethics of it all, we thought it was a perfect time to ask you again to try using Pinterest in a different, more proactive way.

I’ve been keeping track of my projects on the Oh My! Pinspiration board. It’s been a little slower going that I’d originally planned, but it’s definitely encouraged me to try some projects that I probably wouldn’t have – and to share things which are less than perfect. There’s definitely a moment of “is this good enough to send out there into the world?” whenever I hit “pin” on one of these projects, but at the core of this challenge isn’t a goal of trying to make the best art/craft, it’s a challenge to work with the things that inspire me and to give myself the freedom to play. Here’s a few of the projects I’ve taken on in the last few months:

Combining two images I love and playing around with different versions. See pin for sources.

My interpretation of the t-shirt necklace. Longer, looser and with a braid. See pin for source.

Came across a Dala Horse softie tutorial and whipped up a couple of my own. See pin for source.

An envelope clutch made of obi fabric. See pin for sources.

Want to play along? It’s easy! Take a look at your pins and listen to what they’re telling you. Is there a common colour story? A particular type of project you pin over and over (and over) again? A tutorial that you’ve always wanted to try but haven’t made time for? And then just do – make time for a little me-time in your busy schedule and sew, draw, paint, knit, create.

When your pinspired work is complete, take a picture and upload it to Pinterest, making sure you tag either Oh My! Handmade or me in your description. We’ll make sure your pin gets repinned to the Oh My! Pinspiration Board. Sounds too complicated? Simply tweet your image with the hashtag #PinspirationChallenge and I’ll make sure it gets pinned to the board. Be sure to include a link to the original pin(s) which inspired you!

And to sweeten the deal – and help get those creative juices flowing, I’m going to throw in an Omiyage Creativity Pack as a proverbial carrot.

Here’s how to pin & win:

Each project you pin will be worth one entry – and yes, you can pin multiple images of one project, but no, you can’t have extra entries for extra images of the same project!

At the end of October, I’ll put the names of each contributor and their project(s) into a hat and pull out a winner.

The winner will be sent a a surprise pack of Omiyage goodies - inside you might find mt washi tape, Divine Twine, gorgeous chiyogami paper, fun stickers, cute stamps… perfect for inspiring you to create more handmade goodness!

International pinners & winners welcome!

Do It For Yourself – 4 Projects Just For You!

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Chances are you began your journey into your creative business by creating things for yourself (and loved ones). Are you still making time to make outside of your business? As we become wrapped up in our own businesses, often the first thing to go is this kind of “me-time”. Don’t forget to be kind to yourself – give yourself free time and reward yourself every now and then!

Here are four DIY projects which don’t take a lot of time or materials. As the seasons change, who doesn’t want a few new special things? Go on then, do it FOR yourself!

T-Shirt Necklace – Whole Living (This would be great as a Fall Scarf too!)
Envelope Clutch – SwellMayde
Glittery Brooch / Belt – Tatertots & Jello
Sparkly Shoes – Modernly Wed

Have you spotted any great DIY projects lately? Please share them in the comments.

What are you doing for yourself in your me-time? We’d love to hear about it!

DIY Menu Planners – A Simple Way to Simplify Your Day

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

I’m going to let you in on a little secret. There is a simple thing which you could be doing which will save you time, money and stress.

If you’re like me, you run your small business out of a home office (or if you’re really like me, your office is also your kitchen!) This means your day is probably full of distractions – dirty dishes in the sink, someone’s socks on the floor, figuring out what to make for dinner. When we work during regular hours, but also at all hours, it’s difficult to strike a balance between work-work and house-work. I’m going to admit that I haven’t got it all figured out yet – my worktime spills into my life long past 5pm and, unless I actually schedule it in, the floors don’t get mopped quite as often as they should.

But there is one thing I’m getting right! I menu plan. Do you?

I’ve actually been doing it for so long now that not doing it seems strange. Once a week, I sit down with a cup of coffee, my menu planner and I figure out what we’re going to eat for the next week. Then I use that plan to make my grocery list.

It means going to the grocery store once a week and way less impulse purchases. It means no more “what’s for dinner?” stress. It means way less food goes bad in the back of the fridge. It means healthier, more balanced meals and way less take out! And, if you weren’t convinced yet, all of that adds up to less money spent on food!

Less stress, healthier food, better finances = happier you!
Happier you = more time and energy to devote to your business and your life!

And, of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you that a great looking menu plan is a great addition to your kitchen! Here are a few DIY versions for inspiration:

Top Left: Chalkboard Menu Plan – Whipperberry

Top Right: Recipe Board Menu Plan – Better Homes and Gardens

Bottom Left: Wipe-off Menu Board – Make & Takes

Bottom Right: Magnetic Menu Planner – Omiyage Blogs

So that’s my secret! What’s your secret for saving time and reducing stress while managing a business and a household at the same time?