But worry not, my new crafting obsession hasn’t stopped me from my other maker addictions! I thought a summery craft would be great, so I realized I’ve never made an butterfly origami video. 🙂 So here’s that:
I am always looking for another product to make weddings easier for my beautiful brides and handsome grooms. Everyone loves the look of chalk at weddings, but what if your 4-year-old nephew goes up to the sign and smudges that chalkboard art you paid big bucks? Professional chalkboard artists can have a very large price range.
Chalk Couture enters here. With Chalk Couture, you can make beautiful, professional looking chalk transfers that can be used again and again (while the transfers do have a shelf life of sorts, they will last long enough for numerous projects). The projects you make will look like chalk, but they will be permanent enough to last for decades to be treasured.
Why join with me? I am very excited about other entrepreneurs, especially those are trying to get their handcraft businesses off the ground, or are already running one, and kind of just want to network with people. I think Chalk Couture is a great place to start if you are trying to develop an etsy store. The stencils can give you endless ideas for products, especially during the off-season. Buy these cute stencils and make it through the low season between weddings/Christmas and get started on some seasonal product!
Designers also get 40% off on all retail prices in Chalk Couture, way worth it if you are just trying to do some crafty stuff and really end up liking the product.
Even if you are going to just be a hobbist, I recommend signing up for the Starter Designer Kit, especially if you are planning a wedding, if you just sign up, you can get all your products for 40% off, and you actually get a 50% off coupon for your first order of Chalk Couture after you purchase the Designer Start Up Kit.
Check out what’s available in the Designer Start Up Kit Here:
HERE’S THE CHALK COUTURE STARTER DESIGNER KIT UNBOXING:
I LOVE the new FabFitFun box for the Summer 2018 Season! So many amazing products and I was so surprised by the value – – -they even include a FOREO face cleansing tool (an $89 value, my subscription box only cost me $40 with a $10 off coupon! ). The box easily included over $200 worth of products, if you watch my video above, you will see the breakdown of the prices. Amazing stuff!
I am for sures going to jump into the full subscription soon. :-). You save a lot of money when you just buy a one year subscription, so that’s what I will probably do. I don’t shop very much, and so something like this is a real confidence boost at least four times a year. LOL. I highly recommend it for the busy mom, professional, or anyone else who isn’t taking enough time for themselves (all of us, right? 🙂 )
I was not compensated for my subscription box review, nor given any goods or exchanges, so my word is my own here!
The scent of BBQ lingers in the air this time of year. The time has come to fire up your grill and drink a nice glass of ice tea on a patio somewhere. Time to celebrate Dads, America, sunshine, root beer, ice tea and ice cream too (of course) .
I wanted to make something sweet since the hot weather rolled in, and I thought a naked cake would be perfect. I love the idea of naked cakes and piling them with a bunch of fruit. Strawberries and blueberries are an amazing way to compliment the season. Put them on kabobs and mix them with marshmallows. Make a refreshing fruit salad festive in patriotic colors. In this case, I just threw them on top of my cake! (Adding fruit make it healthy, right?)
I recently had an order where I made some toppers being used as place cards. The toppers turned out so cute and I thought about how I haven’t made a cupcake tutorial yet! I love how these adhesive dots can create this 3D edge to crafts, really gives it that sleek and professional look. 🙂 If you like this design and want to order something similar, you can send me a message here.
So, as you know me, I couldn’t get my mind off of cupcake toppers. I started messing around with the dots and toothpicks, and the next thing you know I made this fantastic cake topper for my naked cake. Who would have thought.
Speaking of Dad Season, I am happy to announce our next giveaway for one customized beer tote! No deadline has been announced yet, but enter as soon as possible! Follow on instagram or Facebook to see when the big LIVE drawing will be when yours truly does a face reveal (yikes!) and announces the winner!
Father’s Day Giveaway! Yay! Excited to announce a big Father’s Day giveaway! Just like this post, on Facebook or instagram, start following, & shout out to a friend! #giveaway #giveaways #fathersdaygifts #fathersday #beer #beertote #beertotes #rootbeer #brewery #beerfestival #beerstagram #beerpong #beer🍻
Mother’s Day is in six days! Are you ready? I didn’t know what to do for Mother’s Day but I thought using my We-R-Memory Keeper FUSE tool could help me! All of sudden, I woke up after a long night and only had these confetti, embellishment filled clear shaker cards in my mind. I know every crafter has those moments, when you neeeeddddd to make something.
The FUSE tool is originally meant for creating customized pockets in your scrapbooks. I have never been into scrapbooking, but once I started experimenting with this tool, I finally understand the obsession. Now, I know why 20% of most craft stores are devoted to scrap booking. :-). To say that I fused too much is an understatement….
Like all the fun embellishments and papers?? I got this island/tropical themed scrapbook kit from Designed by Annaliese on etsy!
I went nuts with the FUSE tool. I don’t have a binder yet to put my scrapbook pages in. I will say being able to include mementos and fuse them into the pages is a huge plus to this tool. (I still need to go to the store and get the Crop-A-Dile, it makes perfect punches for three ring binders, and also can help install eyelets (which will be very useful for shaker tag in another, future blog post).
The peak of wedding season is upon us, and I hope we are all getting ready! I am super proud to announce the launch of my first invitation product, available on etsy. Everything is finally coming together in terms of commercial licenses for fonts, wording, design ideas and enough experience in the business to be able to produce a stellar product/experience I know brides will love.
PSST— want to win some of these for your bridal shower?! Be sure to enter the giveaway on the Facebook page and Instagram! Just tag a friend, like the page, and/or start following! Winner will be announced Tuesday, May 1st, 2018.
I’m so happy and blessed to be able to run my etsy shop. In terms of creativity and entrepreneurship, these last four years building up the business to where it is now has been such a life-changing journey, and I can’t be more grateful for my wonderful customers, family, and friends for all of their support.
In the beginning, it was just me folding paper cranes for weddings. I’ve shared my etsy experience with my brides, moms-to-be, and others celebrating the special moments in life.
What about you? Have you ever thought of starting your own etsy shop?
Whenever I go to the winery to buy corks for my place card holders, I always get a raised eyebrow with the question, “What do you use all these wine corks for?”
“The brides just love them,” I reply, “I run a little etsy shop online, and a lot of brides love the vineyard weddings.” Then I usually add, “Do you have an etsy shop?”
Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they don’t know what etsy even is.
If they don’t, I always tell them they should. We are all talented and unique people. We are living in an amazing time of internet and connection. If you are looking to create your own extra income on the side, this is a monumental time in human history when it should be easy.
I started with paper cranes and the desire to have my own business, to create something that was entirely mine. As I grow more, an overarching dream for passion is something I want everyone to have.
I’m going to start posting more crafting videos targeted to inspire the inner etsy shop owner in all of us, or even the DIY bride. I can’t name how many different products I’ve sold on etsy, some that customers have really loved, but stopped selling so I could focus in another direction.
These painted signs are a perfect starter product for an etsy shop or just an amazing way to customize a sign for your wedding. You can use a Cricut Explore to cut out a vinyl decal, or if you don’t have a die cut machine, you can always use alphabet stickers to customize the words you want.
This technique is very simple starting with a base coat of white. Wait for the white paint to dry, I waited one day to fully dry, then place the stickers/decal over the white and start painting the color you want over the top. Let it dry for one day, then take off the decals. You’ll get an amazing sign like this one!
Whether you are a DIY bride looking to make something unique for your big day, or a creative type trying to find a craft you can master and sell, this sign might be just what you are looking for!
I’ve been crafting up a storm as usual, especially since I learned about the new app from DarbySmart. Marketing a blog can be really difficult. One reason I started this blog was because I also wanted to reach out to other handmade business trying to extend their presence on the internet.
DarbySmart, founded in 2013 by Nicole Shariat Farb, has been on the forefront of crafters, chefs, and hobbyist culture. I’ve had a lot of fun using their services for over the last 5 years. With over 60 million view monthly, the Darby App is the place to go to promote any sort of craft business. Just like on Instagram, I’ve been able to make friends with people who are trying to do the same thing I am.
While I used to connect my YouTube videos to my blog posts, I am going to embed my video links from DarbySmart. Why? Because the new Darby app is amazing!
Here are some new videos that I just posted on Darby!
Easter is just around the corner! What are you going to put in the Easter baskets? I’ve been wanting to do this post for a while just because it’s so darn cute! Plus, let’s be honest, one can never go wrong with a bath bomb.
Bath bombs are one of the most versatile crafts I know. One would be surprised how many different intricate shapes can be made from molds, especially silicone molds. For this project, your standard, traditional plastic egg is perfect. I have a basic bath bomb recipe below, one that I’ve used in many projects, including the Seashell Surprise Bath Bombs .
Witch Hazel (available in the aisles of Walmart, just be sure to fill it in an empty spray bottle. You are going to want to spray it a bit, and then check the consistency, and then spray it again.)
Optional:
Epsom Salts
Silicone Mold (I prefer silicone because it really is a perfect copy. I’ve made some very intricate bath bomb designs, and when you use a silicone mold you can get an exact precision to the mold, so I highly recommend silicone molds when doing your bath bombs).
Plastic Animals (Any sort of fun item that won’t be damaged from a bath bomb and water is great to embed into your bath bombs. Who doesn’t love a surprise?)
Place 1 cup citric acid into a bowl. Mix and sift until you can get all the clumps out.
Mix 2 cups of the baking soda with citric acid. (Add optional 1/3 cup epsom salt here.) Sift and mix with hands again to get all the clumps out.
Mix the citric acid and baking soda until well incorporated.
Put in some drops of the food coloring.
Put in some drops of essential oils.
Mix until oils and food coloring are well incorporated. Keep mixing the bath bomb mix until the food colorant starts to come through and change the whole color of the mix.
Fill an empty spray bottle with witch hazel. Spray mix with witch hazel. In between sprays, mix and squeeze the bath bomb mix until you get a solid consistency to place into the molds.
Once your bath bomb mix has reached a clumpy consistency, pack them into your silicone molds.
The cherry blossoms started budding this week in my neighborhood. The days have finally turned and spring is already here in New Mexico. Nothing like a sweet mix of blue skies, Sandia Mountains, and budding cherry blossoms. Ah….
I’ve been searching far and wide on Etsy for a cute Easter basket stuffer. There are so many cute things on Etsy, it’s really hard to pick sometimes. My daughter is obsessed with tiny things (but what little kid isn’t? hehe). I was so happy about my purchase of this little bunny in an Altoids tin from SetApartCreation. It was only $4 too! Can you believe that?
To also prepare for the festivities, I figured out how to make bunnies out of napkins. I am a natural origami enthusiast and was so excited as to how these turned out. They even have whiskers!
Your guests will hop for joy when they see these Easter bunnies!
Mother’s Day is in six days! Are you ready? I didn’t know what to do for Mother’s Day but I thought using my 
Easter is just around the corner! What are you going to put in the Easter baskets? I’ve been wanting to do this post for a while just because it’s so darn cute! Plus, let’s be honest, one can never go wrong with a bath bomb.
