Getting in the Mood for Autumn

I love Autumn. And although I do enjoy Summer, I must confess that by this time of year, I've usually had enough of the hot weather and start getting in the mood for Autumn. Fortunately for me, I get a little taste of all things Fall throughout the Summer while working on Modern Handmade Child. If you're ready to take a little peek into Fall, be sure to check out our Autumn issue, which was just published this week:


I've also been working on some new Fall and Halloween inspired designs in felt hair elastics. Fun! Here's a little sneak peek at what's to come in my Etsy shop this season:

red apple felt hair elastic

acorn felt hair elastic

yellow birch leaf felt hair elastic

pumpkin felt hair elastic

ghost felt hair elastic

So be on the lookout for those soon. And if you have any other designs you'd like to see, please don't hesitate to ask...I love custom orders! :)

Making Valentines

Working at a florist, I knew that as Valentine's Day got closer, I would certainly run out of both time and energy to make Valentines, so I made sure to get a head start this year. And with a week to go until the big day, I'm happy to say that the Valentines for my daughters preschool class have been done for awhile now. It's nice to be ahead of the game for once.

We had a lot of fun making these Valentines together. It was really interesting to watch her drawing the faces on the butterflies. Each one is certainly unique, and I was impressed by the amount of detail she included. While I had been thinking just a face, she decided to draw foreheads, faces, hair, hands, feet, and bellybuttons, among other details, explaining what she was drawing the whole time. For instance, this one she named 'Mr. Orange', and she said she was writing his name:

This one has germs:


Wow, really? Germs? Hmm...maybe that's why this one has its hands in its pockets:


And meanwhile, this one just has a mouthful of blueberries:

It was great to be able to take our time with the Valentines, instead of rushing to finish them on time. Since we had more of a leisurely pace while we were making these, I decided to put together a tutorial for Modern Handmade Child. You can see the full tutorial on the MHC blog today. Enjoy!

Lots of exciting things going on!

As I am sitting down to type of my first blog post since September, I'm thinking to myself, 'Wow, where did the time go?!?' I've been meaning to get back into blogging for quite some time now, but as I got busier and busier in the fall, it kept getting put on the back burner. But now the craziness of the holidays is past, and I'm starting to get settled back into my regular routine, so I thought I'd give it a go again. Plus I just have too many exciting things going on right now to not stop and take a moment to share them!

First and foremost, exciting news on the family front: I'm pregnant! Baby #2 will be arriving in late May, and we couldn't be more thrilled! It's hard to believe we're already only 4 months away from our new little bundle of joy. I can't wait!

Second, exciting news on the Modern Handmade Child front: we have freshened up our website and now have a blog! We have diligently been working behind the scenes on this project for quite some time now, so I am both excited and a bit relieved that it's finally up and running. Come by and check it out at www.modernhandmadechild.com.

And lastly, as I was looking at the calender the other day, I realized that my 5 year Etsy-versary is tomorrow. Wow!! It seems like just yesterday that I was setting up my shop, and now I'm at the 5 year mark. That's surely a milestone worth celebrating! And what better way to share my joy of 5 years of selling on Etsy than to have a sale! So, starting tomorrow, January 23rd, everything in both my shops (The Clever Kitty and The Curly Kitty) will be 25% off all week long. Hooray! Just enter the coupon code 5years at checkout. Enjoy!

New MHC issue + EtsyKids Summer Shopping Guide + a day job = chaos!

As I'm sitting down to type my first blog post in over a month, I'm realizing that the past month has been kind of a blur. But I thought it important to come post again for a couple of reasons. First, I've spent many a late night working on the summer issue of Modern Handmade Child, and I'm thrilled to announce that after a few technical glitches on Saturday, we published on Sunday! It's filled with lots of fun activities, fashion trends for summer, some easy recipes for cool treats, and much, much more. I'm also super excited to say that my husband contributed a song for this issue, so be sure to check that out - you can download it for free on our website and find the lyrics are on page 73 of the magazine:

Now that the summer issue is all wrapped up, it's time to get busy on the Summer Shopping Guide on the EtsyKids website. I'm hoping to get all of the great new summer stuff up by the end of next week, so stay tuned for that.

Things are also starting to pick up at the florist (there's usually a bit of a lull after Valentine's Day). This week and next are two of the busiest weeks of the year with Mother's Day, proms, and the start of the wedding season. Which brings me to the other reason for this post. I will be putting my Etsy shops in vacation mode for the next two weeks, until hopefully the chaos of my day job and finishing up the EtsyKids shopping guide dies down. I plan to reopen sometime the week of May 17th, and hope to list some new stuff shortly after.

Whew!

What a whirlwind month this has been!  I keep waiting for my life to calm down, and it only seems to be getting more and more hectic.  I've been super busy with a couple of side projects, and haven't had much time to devote to my crafting or my blogging the past few weeks.  The first was a special mini-issue of Modern Handmade Child celebrating motherhood:

I love this issue, and I'm sure you will too.  Be sure to see my article on page 21 about the Etsy Baby Shower.

The other big thing I've been working on is EtsyKids.  When I recently returned to work at the florist shop full time, it quickly became increasingly difficult to keep up with everything that I have been doing.  The EtsyKids Team has grown so much over the years, and I feel like it's time to get organized, and get lots of help from our amazingly talented team members.  So we did a team survey, and I have been sifting through hundreds of thoughtful responses from our members.  It's a super important task, and also an incredibly time-consuming one.  But the end result (finding a bunch of enthusiastic people to help out with various team related tasks) will definitely be worth it.  I guess it's like they sometimes say, things will get worse before they get better.  Or in this situation, busier before they get calmer.  But when that day finally comes, I will appreciate it even more.

Lots of new stuff going on around here

So as I had mentioned last week, I've opened a new shop on Etsy, The Curly Kitty. I haven't had much time to start listing my jewelry there yet, as I've been busy with another project (we'll get to that in minute), but I did get everything set up and listed one brooch. I've been working on my photos, and have taken a few, but I want to try out a couple of other things with them as well. I went outside this afternoon to collect some more props for them...you can find lots of interesting things right in your own backyard! Next I just need to set aside time when the lighting is good to take some more shots, and I can list to my hearts content.

So, new shop, new listing...and you may have also noticed a slighlty new look to my blog! I decided to updated the color to fresher springier green. I think it looks quite nice, and am enjoying the change.

Now on to that other project I've been busy with...Modern Handmade Child. We just finished up the spring issue, and I must say, I'm quite proud of it! It's full of wonderfully cheery and springy things, as well as some great ideas for Valentine's Day, and lots of great recipes. So grab a cup of tea, sit back, and enjoy flipping through our spring issue:

We'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas on this issue, and welcome your feedback. Drop us a line anytime at editor@modernhandmadechild.com.

Theme Thursday: Sharing the Love

As we are wrapping up the spring issue of Modern Handmade Child, I thought I'd take a moment to give a little shout out to some of the gals that have contributed to the issue. We come from different parts of the world and different backgrounds, but the one thing we all have in common is our love of the handmade lifestyle. These talented ladies have been generous to share this love by writing articles for the mag, so for this week's theme, I wanted give back and share the love with you. It's all about the love, baby!

Heart Breaker Bloomers by Rae Gun

Red Handkerchief Bolster Pillows by Studio Rouge

Pretty Girl Clips by Flirty Bird

Baby's 1st Prima Tutu by Tutu Cute and Moore

Sweetheart Toppers by Mary Had a Little Party

Frieda Felt Flower Hair Clip by Linda Dearie

Thanks, ladies!!

Has it really been...

a month since I last blogged? My, oh my, where did November go? Oh wait...now I remember: I published the winter issue of Modern Handmade Child, worked extra at the florist shop in preparation for our holiday open house and Thanksgiving, made new items for my Etsy shop (including 4 new hand sewn flower designs), finished up and launched the new EtsyKids website, and traveled for Thanksgiving, not to mention the every day craziness of being a mom to a 2 1/2 year old. No wonder November flew by! But I think I'm finally caught up with everything that got set to the side while I was in the midst of November chaos, and hope to get back on track with blogging too.

It's here! Hooray!!

Open publication - Free publishing - More winter

The winter issue of Modern Handmade Child has arrived! I am so thrilled with this issue! It's filled to the brim with fantastic articles, crafts, and ideas for the winter and holiday season. So take a peek...I'm sure you'll love it!

Theme Thursday: Modern Handmade Child Staff

The past couple of weeks have been crazy busy for me, as we've been finishing up the next issue of Modern Handmade Child. This week, I thought I'd give a little shout out to a few of the talented ladies who are working with me on the mag:

Gretchen and I are the co-founders and editors of Modern Handmade Child. She's a very talented illustrator and designer, and her shop is filled with the most adorable artwork, like this print:

Oh Happy Day Print by Chichiboulie


Kristi is a writer for the dwell section, and her shop is full of all things cute and girly, such as this sweet little headband:

Dainty Blooms Headband by Zuzu Girl


Kim is a writer for the play section. She has a background in early education, and makes these wonderful little flipboards:

Educational Flipboard Games Set by Tootsie Bear


Rozzi does sewing tutorials for the magazine, and in her shop you will find sweet little outfits for your little sweet peas, like this darling bowling shirt:

Buster Bee Bowling Shirt by Rozzi's Sweet Peas


Nicole is a writer for the taste section. She makes boo boo cubes, paper party goods, and these fun redesigned crayons:

Lil Scribblers™ by Lil Boo & Co.


The newest addition to our team is Marissa, who will be writing for our 'wear' section. Her shop is full of super cute clothing for babies and toddlers, like these diaper covers:

Garden Lover Ruffle Diaper Cover by Rae Gun

Premiere issue of mhc out now!

I'm so excited to announce that the premiere issue of modern handmade child has arrived! It's jam packed full of the latest handmade fashions and decor, as well as crafty tutorials and fun activities you can do with your kids. So take a peek...I'm sure you will love it!

Open publication - Free publishing - More kids

Now I think I'll go do one more happy dance, then go get some much needed rest.

Wondering why I haven't blogged in awhile?

Because I've been working like mad on this:

Open publication - Free publishing - More kids

Be sure to check for our first issue in August! Yippee!!