new work

Recycled lumber wrap purse. Interior pockets. Adjustable shoulder strap. Wears like iron...

 

 I love the zipper end detail - glad I figured that one out!

Gotta add those grommets anywhere I can - love 'em.

DIY fabric labels

Along with the purchased vs. D.I.Y. biz card debate that rages in my head every now and then (see previous post)... is the custom printed vs. D.I.Y. fabric label dilemma!

On the one hand: it would be so nice to just conjure up one of those websites that sells custom printed fabric labels, fill in the blanks with the info I want to have on my labels, press enter, and shazamm! - my custom printed labels will be on their way with nothing more for me to do except wait for their arrival, open the package, and USE THEM!!!

But on the other hand... I'm going to pay a big price for the convenience of those ready-made labels- not just in terms of actual moola (which is quite substantial from my calculations), but also in terms of design flexibility. You see (call me crazy if you must!), but I like to change-up the font I use for my business name. Often. Well... maybe 'often' is too strong of a word. How about somewhere between 'never' and 'a lot'....

I also use several different styles and sizes of labels: folded, sew-in the seam; single, sew around the edge; great big funky labels for a particular line of bags; two lines of text, single line of text... you get the picture! So to purchase 250 (usually the quantity you need to order to get a half decent price) labels in each of the sizes and styles I use... Well, that really would be crazy! And totally beyond my budget.

So, that's why I now own stock in the company that makes ink-jet printer compatible, iron-on transfer paper (haha, mostly kidding!). But I do buy a couple of packs of this stuff every month or so, along with a yard or 2 of unbleached, 100% cotton muslin. And so armed, I then set about creating my very own, D.I.Y., custom printed fabric labels! And so can you!

It's pretty straight forward so I'm not going to go into too much detail: Design your label using whatever program you like (I like MS Word), print the labels on the transfer paper, iron onto the fabric of your choice, peel off the paper backing, cut your sheet into individual labels!

Tips: Use a finely woven, light colored, 100% cotton fabric and machine wash and dry it before you begin. Don't forget to print the labels in 'mirror image'. Use a really hot iron, and don't use your ironing board for this - use a really hard, flat surface that can take a little heat (I use a piece of sanded plywood with a press cloth under + on top of my project). And iron, iron, iron... Just when you think they MUST be adhered by now, iron some more!

And while I've tried several different brands of transfer paper, the best and only one I ever use is the Up&Up brand by Target. A pack of 6 sheets costs $8.99.

Oh, and did I mention these labels are really inexpensive to make? Depending on how many labels you print per sheet and the cost of your fabric - I average 36 labels and use $4.99 per yard fabric - it comes out to about 6 cents per label!

D.I.Y. rules!!

recycled biz cards

While I absolutely LOVE the business cards I sometimes order from moo.com (especially their mini moo cards!), I find that the cost is just more than I am willing to pay for something that I will end up giving away. At roughly 25 cents for each card, when I'm handing out 100 or more at each craft show, well, it adds up!

That's why I came up with a way to print biz cards myself, and for (darn close to) FREE! 

I gather paperboard boxes (cereal, cracker, six-pack, etc.) from my local transfer station (or friends and neighbors!), open 'em up and flatten, and then use the nice big self-inking stamp that I got online at stampxpress.com (go to their 'eco-friendly' stamp section) to stamp my custom logo on the blank side of the boxes. 

I've made THOUSANDS of these cards and my investment (if you can call it that!) was a $15 stamp and a $5 bottle of ink. Super easy, inexpensive, and best of all: RECYCLED! Which is, as you know, what I'm all about!

new work

Laptop bags made from repurposed upholstery fabric, faux leather, Army surplus strap.

Repurposed burlap drapery fabric, faux leather.

Upcycled denim, repurposed upholstery fabric, Army surplus strap.

Find these and more in my online shop

new work

got your moose yet?

The animal-friendly way to bag your moose this season:

on a tote made from recycled lumber wrap! Get yours here

*No moose were harmed, mistreated, pestered, or annoyed in the making of this tote bag!*

let the games begin

This past Friday I set up shop at the Belfast Art Market in Belfast, ME. It was a perfectly gorgeous first day of summer AND a very busy first show of the season!

new work

new work

Burlap cross-body purses. Materials: repurposed coffee bags, cotton duck cloth, webbing, nickel hardware. 

Available at The Center for Maine Craft, W. Gardiner, ME. Coming soon to Waterfall Arts, Belfast, ME and Common Street Arts, Waterville, ME.

of leaves and mulch

This past Saturday dawned cool and crisp (and wind-free) and soon I was lured outdoors to do some impromptu leaf-raking. Nothing crazy mind you, just cleaning up around the edges and tucking the garden beds in for the winter under a layer of leaves. Besides, I had work to do inside and I needed to get back to it! Well, one thing lead to another: the sun (finally) rose above the trees, the temperature (quickly) rose above 60 degrees, and I was finding more and more leaves to rake!

Eventually, I had a good pile going and needed to move them from point A (lawn) to point B (garden) with the most bang for my buck (as in: one fell swoop). That's when I spied the kiddie pool... Why not? I had yet to use it for its intended purpose (fill with water, splash around), although it did get used as a giant wash tub this summer (more about that here)... Let's see if it could pull its weight (heehee) during the fall season!

Wow! That thing holds a lot of leaves! At first I tried to pick it up and carry it (dumb), and then push it with the rake (somewhat smarter), and finally I drilled a hole in the rim and threaded a piece of rope through it so I could drag it (brilliant!). It worked great, and 2 more trips to the garden with leaves and that project was complete.

However, there was no way I was going back indoors on a day that was more like a flashback of late August, so I needed to find more leaves to transport... And I found them in great quantity on the vast expanse of nothingness that is my leach field! It abuts the edge of the woods and was covered in a thick layer of leaves and pine needles. Wet, heavy leaves and pine needles. Directly downhill from their uphill destination... And that's when I spied it... my seldom used gas lawn mower... Why not?

 So with visions of finely shredded leaf mulch being (effortlessly) spewed uphill and ever closer to their final resting place (my compost corral), and my father's voice in my head saying "You really shouldn't mow when it's wet", I (inserted ear plugs) and then cranked that sucker up!!!

OK, so it wasn't entirely effortless... but the results were spectacular:

And as soon as Frankenstorm has passed, 

I will go to the beach and collect seaweed to top the pile off with!

Piper the Safety Orange Dog stands guard over our pile 'o garden gold!