Good Evening Blog: A Mishmash Night

It's Thursday, a good evening for mishmash work.  My mind is darting here and there as I think of all the new techniques I want to try, and new projects I want to start.  I don't know why this evening I am so inspired to launch new things.  Surely I have so many projects that I can continue.  Some new ideas are related to ongoing projects, many are not.

One thing I won't be designing anymore is bookmarks, except customized ones.  Here is the last bookmark that I made.  

Handmade bookmark: -front- , collage, altered art, large format.

It was a gift, to my baby sister (37), at Christmas.  I liked it so much that I was going to continue with the design.

Collage, altered art bookmark: -back-, hand-painted paper, stamping, fibers, sequins, jewels, marker, colored pencils, beads.

But alas, my bookmark making is going the way of my handmade card making.  While the love affair with hard copies of books will never end for some, me included, people don't read books like they used to.  You know.  Desktop computer, tablet, laptop, cell phone, ereader, ebooks, email, etc., etc. 

My card and bookmark ideas and designs will be transferred to wall art, desk sets, organization items, digital downloads and other more marketable handcrafted products.  

I'm designing 6-sided art stamps for sale, and I've carved 4, and 2 for myself.  After test-stamping them, on real products that I can alter, embellish and list, I am cleaning up the designs, which can involve re-carving some areas.

Always direct the blade away from your body when carving art stamps.

I am going to make 3 more of the coffee place cards, in the image below.  The set of 4 will be listed in my eCrater Coffeetime Anytime shop.

  Keep your fingers out of the path of the carving tools when shaping your hand-carved stamp designs.

I'm glad I've been through the learning curve of accidentally carving text so that it prints backwards, instead of forwards.  Aren't you thrilled when the learning curve is over so that you can get on with it, and soar?

Handmades Tag -front-

I made individual handmades tags for 3 items that I'll be shipping to North Carolina.  They will be sold at the shop of a friend.

Handmades Tag -back-

More on this later.  I'll share the other 2 tags too.  I love making unique handmades tags for my products.  I also like designing and selling them too.  I'll be making more of them to offer in my eCrater store.  I'm moving Exquisite Little Tags Shop from this blog to there.

Hope you're having a wonderful, creative February!