Hi folks!

Way back when, I would make gift guides and share them on my blog. Lately, I've been thinking of doing that again, especially while looking at so many items for thank you gifts at my wedding. Most items I will hold off  sharing until after the wedding in June so I don't spoil any surprises beforehand. However, with Mother's Day coming up, I thought would share a few of my favorite things I've considered for the mothers in my life. For this list I browsed through aftcra, which is an online marketplace for handmade goods made only in the USA. Each picture is clickable to go to the listing where you can purchase the handmade item.


My parents recently had parts of their house remodeled and I thought this custom embroidery hoop would be something to celebrate that. You send in a photo of the front of the house and can request any special features to be highlighted, whether you want the shrubbery in, or not, etc. With all of this work, the custom order only takes 1-2 weeks which I find amazingly fast. Check out Thistle and Thread Design when you're ready for your own custom house portrait.


Mosaics tend to catch my eye and this coaster set was no exception. I couldn't believe how many tiny pieces of stained glass were fit into each coaster. What mini-masterpieces! Each coaster is 4 inches x 4 inches and can come in sets of 2, 4, 6, etc. Check out Earth Mother Mosaics when you get the chance--you won't be disappointed!


One of the things that I have been contemplating for my wedding is driftwood signs. I thought it might be a nice keepsake for my parents to have one to take home with them. I'm impressed with the uniqueness and custom nature of this driftwood sign by Destination Tree. You can get a group of them like this together or simply one AND you can request a custom engraved message on each one.


My mom always says that a piece of her heart is with me. This necklace from Like Mother Like Daughter Hand-Stamped Jewelry demonstrates just that. The necklaces are made of sterling silver and you can choose the length that you would like--18", 20" and 24".


My mother loves stained glass and reused items and this mobile fits the bill! Can you believe those gorgeous leaves are made from an up-cycled glass bottle? Shop Western Art Glass has really outdone themselves with this piece.


This gorgeous Glass Encased Fabric Necklace by Themis and Thread encapsulates so many of my and my mother's favorite things--blue, hand embroidery and silver. To make this even more amazing, it is a double sided necklace. The paisley flower pattern is so sweet to me.


And of course who could leave out this mug from Mini Masterpieces AZ? To relax, my mom and I would pull out pajamas and put on a show to watch while drinking tea.  For easy cleanup, this 11 ounce mug can even go in the dishwasher.

I hope this post generates more ideas for Mother's Day gifts this year. Consider showing USA makers some love by purchasing gifts through Aftcra this year. 

Whatever you would like to call them, they are now available for pre-order in my Etsy shop. I am so excited to finally be able to share these beauties with you guys. I started making them in September but sold out before I could even put them in my shop. Now that I am all caught up with orders, I can finally share them.


 These are 8.5 inches by 8.5 inches with rounded edges. They also come in a cute blue and cream floral pattern.




These are just the beginning! I have so many more that I want to share and I cannot wait to do so.

Hello, all. Tater awoke from her nap and wanted to share a special code with you in celebration of small businesses like ours. This code is valid from now until Monday. Please consider supporting handmade this season.



P.S. Tuesday, December 1 is the last day to order a made-to-order/custom order to have probable delivery by December 25.

Thanksgiving is one of those holidays where we think about what we have to be thankful for...or we wonder why we have one special day to give thanks when we could or should be doing it all year. I like to think of it as a chance to get together and be thankful for what and who we have, just in case, or in addition to, the days we have forgotten to be thankful or the days that we have already been thankful. Does that make sense?

I am thankful for my family, friends and my uber boyfriend. While I don't live in the same state as my parents, I am even more thankful for those who welcome me into their home(s) on the holidays.

I am also thankful for supporters of handmade goods. Although I make items because it gives me pleasure and relaxation, I also delight in others benefiting from my work. It is so meaningful to me to have others delight in and use what I make. Thank you!

What are you thankful for this year?

Hi, all! I hope that you are having an excellent time of the season. I wanted to tell you about a few important deadlines for the shop if you hope to order something in time for Christmas:

• The absolute last day to purchase a made-to-order or custom item to have probable delivery by December 25 is December 1.
• The absolute last day to purchase a ready-made item to have probable delivery by December 25 is December 15.

Hello, new followers from the Hooksett Old Home Days (or those who just stumbled upon my page)! Welcome, and thank you for your new likes, views and follows! I really appreciate it.


For those of you who were interested in a crocheted basket (pictured above) to hold your goodies, please contact me via my Etsy page and let me know what size and when you need it by. Currently, I have no ready made baskets available, so I can make your one of a kind basket to your liking.

For those who were interested purchasing a state-shaped cork board, check out my listing on Etsy here. You can choose your desired state and size on the drop down menus before adding it to your cart.

Thank you and leave me a comment here or message me on Etsy. I look forward to helping create the perfect gift this season.

The U in unSLUMP stands for updates and I plan to do a few before the fall. (The L in unSLUMP stands for logistics. if you missed this post, check out my Instagram post about it. ) Here is what I'm thinking about:

Internal Updates:
email signature
Blog links--mske sure they are all current and update to new places if not

External Updates:
Update product photos for the holiday season
Twitter and FB page updates
Defined shipping details for when is the last date to order for ready made and handmade items to receive in time for Christmas.
Decide and write about shipping upgrades and finish making shipping profiles for Etsy and Storenvy

Another thing I am thinking about doing for my shop is to sign up for the Merriweather Council's Etsy course.

Is anyone else looking to update or upgrade their shop? If so, what are you up to?

This summer I decided to participate in the Merriweather Council's unSLUMP Challenge to gear up for the holidays. The first questions are:

Some questions to guide you as we begin + things to think about as we move along:

• What went well last year? What didn't? 

• Will anything have to be cut out or slimmed back for a couple weeks? 

• Will you have help? 

• Will you need to implement any changes starting now? 

• Will you need to adjust shipping and lead times? 

• Will you offer a shipping upgrade? 

• Will you be styling your product photos for the holidays? 

• Will you be running any sales or promotions between Halloween and Christmas?

What went well last year?

Well, I sold more items in person than I ever have. In fact, I outsold how much that I sell online. I may do 1 or 2 holiday craft fairs, as that seemed to go well last year too. What didn't go so well is my online sales. I'm not so sure why so I'm trying to beef it up this year.

Will anything have to be cut out or slimmed back for a couple weeks?

Not that I can think of right now.

Will you have any help?

If I do a show, Rich will help me setup and take down. But as far as assembling items, it will be all up to me.

Will you need to implement any changes starting now?

Begin work on a new item that I would like to offer for my shop (socks). Create some NorthEast cork boards so I have some ready-made and available.

Will you need to adjust shipping and lead times?

No.

Will you offer a shipping upgrade?

I'll look into priority vs. first class.

Will you be styling your product photos for the holidays?

I wasn't planning on it but now that you mention it, it sounds like a good idea. I do have some Christmas decor that I could throw in arrange with what I'm photographing.

Will you be running any sales or promotions between Halloween and Christmas?

Yes. I will definitely do Small Business Saturday, possibly extending through Cyber Monday. I would also like to plan a small Christmas/holiday-themed item to include in any order placed between November and Christmas.

There will likely be a few more of these posts as I gear up for the holidays. With people doing Christmas in July sales, I've been getting in the mood to get my own items ready.

Hi all! Child sizes are now available in a few select scarves. The scarves available in child size are black and ivory scrollwork, geometric and blue plaid. When you go to put the item in your cart, simply select "child" and then add to cart. You can click here to see the available listings.

Hi All! This weekend, Storenvy is hosting a big ol' "just because" sale where everything in the sale is 20% off. All of the items in my shop are 20% off. Check out all of the community items for sale here. Check out mine here. 

I've been wracking my brain, trying to think of items that I can make for summer. Then it came to me...spa items!

To start, I have made this nettle and hemp spa cloth. It's a great exfoliator. Although initially rough feeling, it breaks in the more you use it. The more you use it, the softer it is. You can use it in the shower or bath, with or without soap. The natural properties of nettle and hemp are antibacterial and moth repellent. Give it a good rinse after you are done bathing and reshape it to dry.



More spa products will be available in the future! This cloth is available both at my Etsy shop and Storenvy.

One of the things that completely slipped my mind to post about before Easter was that I made some mini baskets. In the future, I hope to make more large baskets to sell, like the one I made for my boyfriend's niece for Christmas. For now, I have these gift baskets to fill with mini treasures for others.

To reach a wider audience, I uploaded some of my listings from Etsy to Storenvy. The above is a screenshot of my storefront there and below are examples of a couple listings.


I don't like one site over the other (for now), but it's fun to see my items in another format. If you purchase through my Storenvy site, let me know how the experience compares for you.

I made some more bandana scarves for the holiday bazaar the other month and I just got around to putting them on my Etsy shop. They're available in floral print, aztec, blue plaid and came. They will definitely help keep you warm in these subzero days we have been having lately.

Last week, I finished creating mini versions of the state corkboard in my shop. Above is a sample of the MA board. Why did I make them? Well, I contributed them to Indie Craft Sampler, an awesome subscription box of craft samples. I cannot wait to review one when I receive mine next month. I hand drew and cut each of the 50 states which I then wrapped.

The samples are more rustic than my usual chalkboards, which I think go well with the business cards and wrapping. They're a little chunkier and have lines running through them. Perfect to tape to your wall or add to a beautifully wrapped gift.

Hi All! I have been feeling more inspired lately to create again. I have had some more shop inspiration and creative endeavors that I cannot wait to share soon. Stay tuned!

Hi folks! I've been meaning to write this for a while but wanted my new blog place to look more together before I shared the link.

It's still not so together, but in the spirit of just getting something out despite whatever shape it's in, I'm going to share it today. The new blog actually lines up with the title and the link is: http://taterandemily.blogspot.com. Check it out and add it to your RSS feeder/Bloglovin'/whatever else you use to keep track of blogs.

The reason I decided to go with a different blog address is that at some point I may want to use this blog again and so I am leaving it open to that possibility. Think of the new blog as a personal blog of sorts.

Also, see below for a screen shot of my shop. I'm still having a 40% off sale and now the prices are reduced to reflect this. Purchase while you can! Once these items are gone, they are gone.


Best wishes, you all, and be sure to follow me over at the new blog!

In my day job, I often teach people about radical acceptance, the notion that holding onto pain promotes suffering and letting it go helps you acknowledge the pain and move forward. (Also note that acceptance does not mean approval. Important, but does not have to do with the point of my post here.) As I've been thinking about the notion this week, I realized that I need to let go of my shop. My brand. This blog. The notion that it will make me money. The notion that it will be popular. I didn't get into this thinking that it would make me money or be popular. I just enjoyed creating and sharing it with others. I only made or posted about things that I truly believed in and enjoyed. Whether or not people bought my stuff or left me comments was not my main concern. However, I realized this week that a bigger part of me than I thought hoped that as I went along, money and a little popularity may naturally occur. I realized this week that I was more disappointed with this than I thought. In the interest of simplifying my life and moving forward, I am shedding the skin of small business to create what I'd like when I'd like to create it. 

Letting go feels freeing to me. I can do what I want to do with this blog. I can post frequently or not at all. I can post about any subject that I so wish. If I happen to make or do something that I want to share with others, I will share it. I am not going to push myself to think of new, creative content when my heart just hasn't been in it lately. When I'm inspired, I want to write all about it, and when I'm not, I just want to hang back and spend time with my loved ones. And I am ok with that. 

I'm not sure yet if I will keep this blog name or use another. This blog will definitely continue to be about myself and my beabull, Tater Tot. If/when it (the name change) occurs, it will happen. (and don't worry, I'll be sure to announce it if you're interested in following along with my life. )

That said, what about the practicality of my shop? What do I do with my inventory? I decided to have a sale to recoup at least my cost of the materials. Use the coupon code LETGO at checkout to save 40% off your purchase of any amount. Once the items are gone, they are gone. 

Thanks for all of your support since starting this endevour three years ago. I'm looking forward to what's next. 

One of my top-selling items will return this week to the shop. Keep an eye out this weekend when it lists on my shop.

I ask this because once I switched to Google+ comments, I noticed that comments left on my posts dropped off drastically. I do get some 1+'s, but it is very rare that I get a comment. 

I wondered if it was because it was the comment form change or that my content was somehow different than before or some other reasons... Please let me know what it is for you...either comment here on this post or send an email to jean . emily @ gmail.com (without the spaces). I am very interested to know. Thank you!