Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Chillin' with the Flu


I'm sorry, but there won't be any post this week. The kids were all sick these past few weeks and now it's my turn to have the aches, sore throat, and sinus pain.

If you live in the eastern states, stoke up the fire, find a warm blanket, and drink lots of hot tea. It's freezing outside!

See you all next week.
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Saturday, January 19, 2013

Masquerade Pen Holder in Plastic Canvas




I've been thinking up so new ideas for accessories to go with my books in the shop this year. I got to thinking about the different types of pens and not a lot of pen holders. I've made pen holders from wood and painted and decorated them, but I really liked the idea of making one from plastic canvas. They're more flexible and easier to ship. I used rice in the base of this design to give the holder weight so it wouldn't tip over when I inserted the feather pens.


 I was inspired by a book design I'd done last year for a masquerade ball guest book for a sweet 16 birthday party. 

I'm working up the pattern and will have it available soon. Wouldn't this pen holder look snazzy in a metallic like silver and purple? I've got to go get some silver thread now!


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Thursday, January 17, 2013

When Should I Order My Book?


I get this question a lot.

When is the best time to order my guest book?

Or sometimes it's just,  Is it too late to order?

When I got married, it was one of those things that was a given. I needed a guest book for my wedding day. I had it on my check list along with types of decoration supplies for shopping a nearby party store. Yet, I didn't buy my guest book there. I wanted something more personalized and matched the rest of my wedding theme. So, I bought an old guest book and recovered it.

(One of these days I'll have to go up into the attic and pull it out so I can show you all.)

But today, guest books are either well thought of or left to the last minute. Most of the time they fall in the latter category.

I can't tell you how many nights I've prayed for a book to reach it's destination on time that even with priority shipping was going to arrive on the day of the event. Now that is close!

How do you avoid higher shipping rates and the stress of whether or not it will get there on time?

Here are some tips from my experience of working with all of you for the past several years on Etsy.

1. Know what you want when you contact the book maker and be as detailed as possible. Don't be afraid to send links or photos of your event theme or ideas of what your looking for.
2. Be prepared to compromise when time is running short.

If you were to contact me today to create a custom book for you, here is the waiting time I'd give you.

Custom hardbound (2-4 weeks completion time)
Custom paperback (1-2 weeks)
Pre-designed paperback (1 week)
Pre-made paperback (ships within 48 hours)

Keep in mind, that these are completion times. You'll need to add on the time for shipment. Most of my paperback are shipped USPS First Class mail. It usually takes about 3-9 days for delivery depending on your location within the US. Outside the US takes almost two weeks or more. And if time is running out or you choose any hardbound book, I generally ship them PRIORITY MAIL that gets it there a little faster - 2 to 3 days in the US.

I've been considering making all my books PRIORITY MAIL, but don't know how you all would feel about the $2.00 up charge in postage for the faster rate all the time. Of course, you can let me know how you feel about switching the postal options in the comments below.

And tell me, at what time before the big day did you realize you still needed a guest book?


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Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Vintage Grey and White Baby Book


This past weekend I treated myself to some creative time. If you saw Friday's post on the gray and white vintage then you know I've had ideas spinning in my brain that I needed to work on.

I had started these book covers a while ago and with the yellow on the frame against the gray and white from Friday's post I came up with this baby album.





But I didn't think this is what my customer wanted, so it's now available in my etsy shop.

So I went to work again, and thinking of vintage and lace and the classic look of gray and white, I put together this:



Mr Chad says it looks more like a wedding book than a vintage baby shower. He may be right. What do you think?

I added these blank "baby" stamped pages inside.



Should I go back to the drawing board? I'd love to hear your ideas.

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Friday, January 11, 2013

Gray and White Vintage



I've been working on a new guest book cover design this week. I recently received a custom order request for something vintage inspired in gray and white.

Usually the first thing I do when I get a request like this is seek inspiration over at Google images. I love these three images that I found just searching under the phrase "gray white vintage"


This one really caught my eye with the yellow. There's nothing more inspiring then vintage frames right?


I' always looking for patterns of color when seeking inspiration for a new design. I really like the above pattern in gray and white, what a great background for a book cover or accent.

Then there is this card box by a fellow Etsy artist. I like the shabby distressed look of the box and the little detail of the silver and pearl between the flowers.

But I'm think with all the gray and white there needs to be a little pop of something. Maybe a color or something that just stands out.

What do you think?



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Saturday, January 5, 2013

Earring Case Pattern and Tutorial



Materials:

1 sheet of 7 count plastic canvas
yarn - your choice of color
needle
scissors

Instructions:

1. Cut the following pieces from your sheet of 7 count plastic canvas

2 pieces 19 x 25  holes (Front and Back Covers)
1 piece 6 x 19 holes (Spine)
1 piece 6 x 10 holes (latch piece)
1 piece 6 x 5 holes (latch piece #2)
1 piece 2 x 10 holes (slider)
2 pieces 17 x 22 holes (Inside pages)

2. Stitch front and back covers according to graph


3. Stitch spine, slider, and latch pieces according to graph:
 **DO NOT STITCH INSIDE PAGE PIECES**


4. Assemble pieces according to assembly graph:



Don't forget to add your earrings!




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