Meet the Maker: Kelley from Plum Pumpkin

Hi friends. How are you? We are just getting off of a family staycation where I spent 90% of the time making jewelry for a week-long show we have coming up next week. If you are in the Philly area head on up to Aldi Mansion in Doylestown and check out our table at the Lydia's Guild Holiday Market. I can't believe it is Halloween and November already. Where does the time go?

Sorry that Friday's Meet the Maker post is late. I have been so busy working and getting ready for this show I have missed some other things. This weeks Maker is Kelley from the Plum Pumpkin. So without further ado, let's meet our maker.

Where are you from? I'm from Utah but have lived in the Chicago area for 7 years.Where do you live now? South Jordan, Utah Cool.

How long have you been crafting? Since I can remember! That is fun.
Do you like other crafts than the one you sell? Yes, I'd love to learn to design stickers/graphic design. I would like to do some acrylic/oil paintings, I want to work on more signs and hand painting them. Sounds like you have lots of different interests.

What drew you to quilting or what inspired you? My mom, Becky, is an amazing talent, she has the golden touch with everything she does. I'm more of a photographer/business person, she is the inspiration behind the shop. I couldn't let all her quilts and things she makes just sit in her basement or be given away for free, so I started this shop with her.That is great you are working on this together. My mom, husband, and kids join in with me sometimes.

Is there a story behind your shop name and if so what is it? Not really, I am a HUGE fan of pumpkins and fall and color purple/plum; so the "Plum Pumpkin" just came together! It is s a cute name.

When did you start selling online? March of this year. Wow so recently.
And What drew you to sell online? I'm an introvert :) I'm no good at sales, my biggest fear is needing to market my products face to face. I don't want to talk about them, I like their beauty and quality to speak for themselves. I'm an introvert too.

What do you like most about selling online and what do you like least? That many many more people can see our things......that it takes a LOT of hard work to get our stuff in front of people. Social media marketing is very difficult! Yes, it certainly can be difficult.

What hopes do you have for your business in the future? I want to create a small, but steady custom order business, that provides a small but steady income stream for my mom, her designs are so beautiful and the quality she does is impeccable. She deserves a bit of compensation for her hard work and dedication! I believe in her! That is great how you are supporting her. Her stuff is beautiful.

What is your most favorite piece that you have made? The fall leaves quilt/runner and Create Sign! Very nice.

You can find Kelley and her Mom's beautiful quilts online at the following locations:

https://www.instagram.com/theplumpumpkin/

https://www.facebook.com/theplumpumpkin/

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThePlumPumpkin

http://theplumpumpkin.com/

If you would like to be interviewed, featured or to have your product reviewed, please email me or comment below.

Coming up:

Lydia's Guild Holiday Show November 6-14. Doylestown, PA

Last day for Free Shipping is October 31. Make sure you head over to our shop and start that Christmas shopping. www.mtnittanycreations.etsy.com
There are affiliate links in our blog. By clicking on them and possibly purchasing from them you help to support our blog. Thanks in advance.

Meet the Maker: Kate from Knit Wit Kate

Hi friends! Happy Monday. How are you? How was your weekend? Ours was not too bad. My husband was away at a conference, which he said was a huge success! The kids and I were home, we did some school, hung out with some friends and went to church. Pretty normal stuff. My sweet husband took this week off to help me prep for a big week-long craft show and because we needed some downtime.

We will probably do some house projects too. What do you plan to do this week?

Since it is Monday, that means another Meet the Maker. Today's interview is with Kate from Knit Wit Kate. So without further ado lets meet our new friend.

Where are you from?Long Island, NY and Where do you live now? Long Island, NY

How long have you been crafting? Many years! I’ve always been super crafty but probably like 7-9 years or so.

Do you like other crafts than the one you sell? Yes! I just love anything crafty in general. Upcycling things, or doing wine bottle crafts, etc. Every year I give the girls in my office a crafty present at Christmas and they love it.

What drew you to crocheting or what inspired you? My mom! She actually taught me (crocheting) a long time ago, and I hated it! Then one day, a year or two later, I got curious about it again and she showed me a second time and I’ve been doing it ever since. I am glad she taught you again.

Is there a story behind your shop name and if so what is it? It’s just a funny name. I can be a scatterbrain so Knitwit was the best name I came up with! It’s funny too because I mostly crochet; go figure! Haha, that is great.

When did you start selling online? I opened my Etsy shop in 2014 but didn’t make a sale until recently actually! When it first opened, I wasn’t sure what I was doing or how to go about anything so I shy’d away from it and just stuck to selling them to family, friends and local craft fairs.

And What drew you to sell online? There’s a huge market for it now, so why not. You can still sell to everyone that you currently are, you just open your range more. There is a large market. That is great you are giving it a go.

What do you like most about selling online and what do you like least? It’s cool to meet so many cool people! Whether they’re just commenting or complimenting your work or giving you advice, this community is by far one of the best! Everyone is so supportive, motivational, and inspiring! I love it. And honestly, what I think it so cute, is that it’s yours. It’s up to you with what happens, how things are done, how things are planned and presented! I like these things too.

What hopes do you have for your business in the future? That it picks up more. Like I had mentioned already, I’ve only recently made my first Etsy sale so hopefully, that will get the ball going. I hope that the holiday season will pick things up for you as for sales on Etsy.

What is your most favorite piece that you have made? My Rainy Day Afghan blanket. I’ve thought about just keeping it for myself (tbh) but.. that hasn’t happened (yet). It is hard sometimes to let go of our favorite pieces. I definitely get that.

What is one thing you would love to share with others who are considering going into the handmade business? Just go for it! What do you have to lose? You might just end up back where you started you could be so much further along than you ever expected! It’s worth a shot, for sure. This is very true. Thanks for sharing Kate.

You can find Kate at these social media links:
Instagram: knitwit_kate
Facebook: facebook.com/knitwitkate
Tumblr: Knitwit-kate
Etsy: etsy.com/shop/knitwitkate

Upcoming Events:

Currently: Giveaway on my Facebook Page. Facebook.com/mtnittanycreations
with my friend Laure from Un anniversaire en or. Head on over and check it out.

Nov 6-14

Lydia's Guild Holiday Craft Market.

Our blog contains affiliate links. If you click on them and possibly buy from them you can help support this blog. Thanks in advance.

Meet the Maker: Jenna from Just Another Bracelet.

Happy Friday friends! How has your week been? We seem to be still getting healthier which is good. I had the opportunity to volunteer in my sons preschool class this week and that was a lot of fun. 

Being that it is Friday it is time for another Meet the Maker. Today's interview is with Jenna from Just Another Bracelet. Today I am going to let Jenna take over my blog and tell you about herself. Have a great weekend friends. Without further ado, let's meet Jenna. 

My name is Jenna and I'm the person behind Just.Another.Bracelet.
I'm from Rocky River, a suburb on the west side of Cleveland, Ohio.
After living abroad for a few years, I returned to my roots and am currently living in Lakewood, Ohio. It's another city that borders both where I grew up and CLE itself!

I've been into crafting for as long as I can remember. I've only been making bracelets with the purpose of selling them for almost a year. Apart from making friendship bracelets, I also do a lot of scrapbooking and photo collages!
I began making bracelets at summer camp when I was probably around 10 years old. They were something almost all the kids did and a great way to keep me occupied for long stretches of time...like rest periods at the pool. I was inspired to start Just.Another.Bracelet after my Peace Corps service in Peru. While in Peru I was invited to teach an artisan group my bracelet making techniques. The group thought that by adding friendship bracelets to their repertoire, they would be able to draw in more business. I was blown away by the participation of these women in my 2-day workshop (some traveled hours on foot to attend each day)! Apart from teaching the artisan group, I also made bracelets for my Peruvian friends...as gifts, as a way to remember me when I went back to the States, as a way for them to represent their favorite soccer team. I realized that for some of my friends their bracelet was so much more than just a bracelet. It was a connection to someone far away or represented a memory or a loved one who had passed. When I got back home I needed a way to make a little money while I was job hunting and Just.Another.Bracelet was born. I wanted to be able to share my bracelets with the world.

I think I started selling online in September or October of 2016. Because
I needed a forum to market my bracelets that was low cost.

For the future of my business, I'd like to hit 50 (or more!) sales by the end of the year on Etsy (I sell quite a few in person to friends of friends of friends and so on also). I'd also like to keep growing, adding new patterns and styles. I'm also in the planning stages of adding headbands which I think will be a really great addition to the shop!

My favorite piece is probably my Dreamcatcher Festival Cuff or maybe the charm bracelet that I made for myself...it has a charm that says "live in the sunshine, swim in the sea, drink the wild air."

For those looking into starting a small shop business remember to "Stick to it!! It's really hard to get started and stay motivated when you're not making a lot of sales or getting a lot of attention. But if it's something you love and it shows in your work, eventually the sales will come!"

As final thoughts, I'd just like to thank you for this opportunity and give a shoutout to the maker community at large. Everyone has been super supportive of my endeavor and I love being able to share my work with the world! And never be afraid to reach out to me about my work, or how I got started, or a custom piece, or whatever!

My Etsy shop:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/JustAnotherBracelet?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/just.another.bracelet/

Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/jab180/justanotherbracelet/

Upcoming Event:

 Nov 6-14 Lydia's Guild Holiday Craft show.

Doylestown, PA

Our blog contains affiliate links. If you click on them and possibly make a purchase you can help support our blog! Thanks in advance,

DIY and Product Review: Pumpkin Carving using a Pumpkin Carving Kit from Vita

Hi friends. How are you? How has your week been? We are doing much better. It seems we are finally coming out of all the sickness that has been hitting our family. I'd love to hear from you. Comment below or email me.

Recently, I was contacted by Abby, a representative for a premier Arts and Craft brand, to review their Pumpkin Carving Kit and write a blog post about my experiences. I am excited to share with you how it went and a carving contest that Vita is sponsoring that goes in conjunction with Halloween and this fall season.

I ordered the toolset through Amazon. Here is what it looked like when it arrived. My kids were very excited to get started. Last weekend, we had the opportunity to head to a local farm for their Apple Festival and purchase our pumpkins.

We started by laying out all of the fun stencils that are included in the kit to pick which one we wanted to use.

We went with one of the jack-o-lantern faces. Whipped out the tools and started working. My husband loves to work with his hands so he got right in there and took off the top using the saw from the kit and had us all helping him pull out the guts.

We found it easier than in years past to get the guts out by using the scoop tool included in the kit. In years past we have used various large spoons and such to help us scrape out the guts. I think the scoop was one of my favorite tools.

We then proceeded to tape the stencil to the side of the pumpkin where we wanted to cut out our face. We then used the poker tool to poke the corners of each part of the face. We removed the stencil and drew the face with a permanent marker using the pokes as a guideline.

Then we went back to using the saw and cut out the face by following along the face lines that we drew. Each of us took turns using the saw to cut out different parts of the face.

Our families thoughts on cutting out the face:

"This was fun." 12-year-old daughter.

"Fun" 10-Year-old daughter.

"Fun" 8-year-old son.

"Was this fun?" asking our 4-year-old "yeah"

" I wish it was electric." Jeff my husband, "but it worked well."

I think it worked really smoothly. Seemed to cut through the pumpkin really easily and seemed easy to follow our lines we drew for our face. Each of our kids, minus the four-year-old, seemed to be able to handle the saw fairly easily. We didn't really use the etching tool but probably would if we had been doing a different design.

The tools seem really sturdy and easy to use for all sorts of ages. Great kit for the whole family. We had a lot of fun carving our pumpkin and if we have time hope to carve out four more before Halloween. The kit seems reasonably priced and it arrived quickly through Amazon. Anyone out there looking to do some fun pumpkin carving this would be a great kit to get. Vita has given me a coupon to be used by my followers. Look below for the info on how to purchase and for the coupon. In addition, Vita is having a Pumpkin Carving Contest. See below for more info.

Here is the Company and Product Info:

• LINK TO PRODUCT(NOTE: link redirects to Amazon):http://vitacarving.com
• EXCLUSIVE 20% OFF COUPON CODE: QQL8Y4FW
• Vita's FACEBOOK: Vita For Home
• Vita's INSTAGRAM: @vitaforhome

So here are the simple details regarding the pumpkin carving contest Vita is sponsoring:

1. Must be a pumpkin (of course!)
2. All entries must either be published to Instagram with @VitaForHome tagged and hashtags:

• #VitaForHome
• #CelebrateWithVita
• #CarvingContest

OR the contestant can email their submissions to hello@vitaforhome.com

3. The winner will be announced on November 20th so contestants will have time to participate even after Halloween.

4. The prize is a $200 Amazon Gift Card.

How exciting is all of this! I hope you will join us and get one of these fun pumpkin carving kits and enter into their contest. Don't forget to use the exclusive coupon included above. If you have any questions, please let me know and I will try and answer them.

Have a great rest of your week and please share pictures with me if you do end up getting the kit and carving out a fun pumpkin. I would love to see what you create.

I did receive this product to give my honest opinion on the product and to share about their contest. In addition, there are affiliate links included in my blog. If you click on one and possibly purchase something you can help support my blog. Thanks in advance.

Meet the Maker:Daisy from Natures Love Shop

Hi friends, How was your weekend? Ours was ok. Our youngest is still struggling through the cold that has gone through our family. We did have a fun time at an Apple Festival at a local farm. We got pumpkins and tons of apples. What fun things did you do? I would love to hear from you. Comment below or send me a message.

Being Monday, it is time for another Meet the Maker post in our series. Today's interview is with Daisy from Natures Love Shop.

So without further ado lets meet Daisy.

Hi, Daisy where are you from? I'm from Los Angeles, California.

Where do you live now? In the San Fernando Vallery, Los Angeles.
Cool.

How long have you been crafting? For about 3 years.

What drew you to create essential oils or what inspired you? What inspired me was trying to find a more natural and organic way of living for my family. That's great, I am glad you did that so that you can share with all of us.

Is there a story behind your shop name and if so what is it? Since we use essential oils and they come from nature, the perfect name to reflect that would be Natures Love Shop. This is great.

When did you start selling online? We opened shop in Nov of 2015.

And what drew you to sell online? Being able to stay at home with my kids and create things that I am passionate about. This is a great reason.

What hopes do you have for your business in the future? I'm hoping I can have some of my products in the stores! That would be amazing. This is a great goal I hope that works out for you.

What is your most favorite piece that you have made? Sleepy Time Blend! It's a blend that helps with sleep, one of our favorites in our home. Cool.

What is one thing you would love to share with others who are considering going into the handmade business? Its tough at first but the outcome is amazing. You get to meet a lot of cool people and other shops owners too. This is very true. Thanks for sharing Daisy.

You can find Daisy's shop online at the following locations:
Shop: www.naturesloveshop.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/naturesloveshop
Facebook: www.facebook.com/naturesloveshop
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/naturesloveshop
Instagram: www.instagram.com/naturesloveshop

If you would like to be interviewed please email me.
Please note that our blog contains affiliate links. If you click on them you could help provide funds to keep our blog going.

Upcoming events:
#HandmadeHolidaysMarket:
Monday, Oct 16, at 8 pm, we will be joining 14 other shops for a sale on Instagram. Follow the above hashtag or head over to our Instagram to check out the great sales.

Lydia's Guild Holiday Craft Show: Come check out our table and the other wonderful makers in the Philly area.