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Posts Tagged ‘crafting’

Fabulous Idea!

Posted in Craft Business, Crafts, tagged , , , , , , on March 13, 2014| 2 Comments »

The other day I watched one of my favorite movies, Baby Boom.  It’s a predictable chick flick made in 1987 that I can watch over and over again because it gives me a feeling of business/creative empowerment.  The story in a nutshell: heavy hitter, single business woman working for a large marketing firm inherits a baby, moves to the country, experiences many pitfalls to owning a country house on many acres of orchard, learns to make applesauce out of boredom and necessity, sells the applesauce as “gourmet baby food” and becomes a huge success in her own right.  Cool, right?  And plus the movie stars Diane Keaton, who I love.

A pivotal scene in the movie is when Diane Keaton is at her wit’s end and is contemplating burning down her money pit country house.  She ordered two dozen cans of kerosene at the store when two yuppie couples come in.  The city couples go mental when they see Diane Keaton, her baby and the homemade applesauce with its cute country packaging.  “Gourmet baby food!  Fabulous idea!”  They buy a couple dozen jars each.

Gourmet baby food! Fabulous idea!

Lately I’ve been working on some new drink charm sets and am pursuing a new way of marketing my bottle cap magnets.  I’m also testing some lovely little beeswax container candles.  New twists on things I’ve been making for years.

Not one of my new sets, but a best seller. Who can resist the characters of Oz?

I’m excited about the new charms and “twists” I’ve come up with.  When I hit the shows this summer I’ll see people look at my wares, pick them up, inspect them and tell me, “fabulous idea!”  Those are the times that make a crafter proud.

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Doing A Different Thing To The Same Music

Posted in Crafts, Nostalgia, tagged , , , , , on February 7, 2014| 6 Comments »

Picture this: a young woman in her early twenties decked out in leather pants and thigh-high boots and only a camisole covering her upper body.  Her long hair is brushed away from one side of her face and held fast with a sparkly barrette.  The other side of her face is partly covered by the long mane of intentionally chaotic hair.  She’s heading into a popular danceteria in Minneapolis to watch one of her favorite bands play live.  The Suburbs.  The dance floor will be packed with hot, sweaty bodies, hers included, slam dancing to Baby Heartbeat and Music for the Boys.

That young woman was me.  Those were days that will remain in my mind as some of the most fun days of my life.  But things are different now.  I’m older, and slam dancing is not only unfashionable, but also dangerous for someone who may or may not have the brittle bones of a woman in her fifties.  However, being a woman in my fifties doesn’t keep me from loving the music of my youth.  I wear jeans and a sweater instead of leather pants and thigh-high boots.  I have a neat little bob hairdo instead of a longer, wilder mane.  But in my head and heart I’m still that slam-dancing girl.  I remember what it was like to walk into the dark, smoky venue that was First Avenue.  I remember the adrenaline and the thumping bass that became one with my own heartbeat.

My little DiscMan and über fancy speakers set up in Craftland

I got home early from work today and headed straight for Craftland.  While listening to the music I slam-danced to thirty plus years ago to I deplasticized and flattened 144 bottle caps for future drink charms and magnets.

The beginning of a beautiful craft.

Doing a different thing to the same music.  Recalling old times while living my present life.  All is good.

Remember yourself this weekend.

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A Cold Winter Day

Posted in Craft Business, tagged , , on January 27, 2014| 4 Comments »

Such a beautiful day.  The air was clear and the sky was brilliant blue.  Squirrels fed on the seeds fallen from the bird feeders.  The snow drifts were as white and pristine as could be on a January day.  The temperature didn’t get above ten degrees.  In my opinion it was the perfect day to stay indoors and marvel at the beauty of winter from the view of the window.

The beconing bottle caps.

I had twelve dozen (that’s a gross) bottle caps calling my name and saying “embellish us, embellish us!”  What does a craft queen do when her bare-naked bottle caps call to her?  Submits to their every whim, of course.I set up my work station at the table right in front of the door leading to the deck.  Lots of natural light and a lovely view of the scattering squirrels and fluttering birds in the back yard.My time was spent with little circles of paper, freshly flattened bottle caps, and a brand new bottle of glue.  My entertainment was, of course, old-time radio shows flowing from my iPod into my brain, making my imagination work while my hands were busy with production.

The little circles of paper.  That’s right, it’s Carol Brady!

The little circles of paper ran out at nine dozen (that’s one hundred-eight) so I called it quits for the day.  Next in the process is applying the resin, and after a day or two of drying time I’ll create wine charms and magnets from the pieces that, by themselves, are nothing.I’ve been researching my competition and found that some people who make similar items to mine take a less labor-intensive path.  They use pre-flattened, chrome bottle caps (mine are real and flattened by me), they use a paper punch to make those little circles of paper (I use scissors), and they buy fabricated acrylic bubbles, complete with adhesive, so they can just press them on the images and call it a day (I mix polymer and hardener to make a resin and apply on my images with a brush).

That’s a bunch!

I’m not saying the others are lazy and I’m not saying I’m a fool.  Every crafter has her own way of making things.  I’ve found a way that works best for me.  A way that requires attention and precision and a bit more time.  Time enough to listen to some old-time radio shows and frequently glance out the window to see the winter snow drift lazily in mid-air until it lands softly in its place.

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Where Have All The Good Shows Gone?

Posted in Crafts, tagged , , , , , on March 8, 2013| 7 Comments »

Back when I was just a little bud of a crafter I used to watch all sorts of shows about crafting and recycling/repurposing.   In those days I would set up the VCR to record shows like Martha Stewart Living and The Carol Duvall Show while I was away at the day job. 

Martha not only had crafty ideas she also had cooking and housekeeping ideas too.  I loved watching that show with its sweet intro music and calm nature.  Post prison Martha annoys me, and so does her new live show.  It’s all too rowdy and loud and Martha without a script is horrendous.  Well, that’s my opinion at least.

Carol would have all sorts of guests on her show who would demonstrate how to do all sorts of crafty things.  There would be people who could show you how to use the latest rubber stamping products and others who could show you great polymer clay techniques.  It was all crafts all the time and was a well full of ideas from which I could draw.

Husby and I used to spend our Saturday nights watching HGTV which had a great decorating line up.  Some of those shows also had how-to demonstrations, like how to sew cafe curtains or how to paint a hardwood floor.

These days I’m hard pressed to find shows on crafting or decorating.  DIY seems to be all about remodeling and HGTV is all about home buying instead of decorating and crafting.  I miss my simple shows – I don’t have any desire to tear my kitchen apart and build a new one. 

Well, I’ll always have my trusty internet to give me some inspiration and how-to tips.  Somehow, though, it’s just not the same.

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