With Gratitude

I'm feeling the Etsy love right about now. Especially since my Woodland Gift Tag Set was featured in yesterday's Etsy Finds email geared towards a DIY Holiday wrapping experience. Which, you all know I love.

Crazily enough though, I almost missed the inclusion all together. I spent the night at my sister's house, which I looove doing. I'm sure for her it gets tiring, but for me I just love waking up to her busy house with kids running about, eating breakfast, and getting ready for school. But, with all that activity I chose to rather quickly scan my morning emails and I almost missed that one of my handmade goodies was featured in the Etsy Finds email. Needless to say its been a very happy day with much to be grateful for. And with tomorrow being our American Thanksgiving gratitude sounds just about right.

Wishing you all a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving surrounded by those you love most.

til next time,
-Kate ♥

Bad Days Don't Last Forever

Yesterday was a no good lousy terrible horrible rotten bad day. I woke up tired and stayed that way all day. So, when I pulled my car into the driveway in the evening and backed into the garage frame smashing up a section of my little car I shouldn't have been too surprised, but I was. I even had a good feel-sorry-for-myself cry while I took off my coat and boots in the back hall.

But, the nice thing about bad days is that they don't last forever - just 24 hours to be exact. And they are often cured by a late night cup of hot cocoa and an extra two hours of sleep the next day. These two things will prove to be a sad girl's life saver. Well, that and extra marshmallows.

Brown Paper Packages

It snowed here the other day. It melted when it hit the ground, but still...it snowed. I love the snow. I can't imagine having winter without it; the two are synonymous. For me they have to be, because if winter's not cold then what would happen to all those cozy indoor holiday traditions? Would they loose their magic? Because they do have have it. There is a tiny bit of magic woven into the fabric of our holiday traditions.Holidays can bring about a lot of pressure. Scheduling in your family time with your spouse's family time, digging out all the decorations that don't seem to be in the same spot you put them last year, frantically trying to finish up all those handknit scarves you're giving to all the women in your family, mall parking - 'nuff said. But the thing about all of those stressors is that, when you live in the moment, you'll find they're really part of the joy of the season. We can't manufacture time, but we can make something out of it.One of my favorite things to do is to weave some of that magic into each and every gift I give. I may not make all of my gifts by hand, but it doesn't mean I won't spend hours dressing them up and grooming them just so. Most people see gift wrapping as a tedious chore that's rushed through the night before, but not me. I cherish that time spent wrapping. I see it as a luxury; a chance to sit and immerse myself in the moment. I get to re-look at my purchases and envision how their intended recipient will use it, wear it, love it. I get to surround myself with my favorite things - scissors, paper, glue - and turn a white shirt box into a masterpiece. And that smile that lights up someone's face before they've even unwrapped their package - well, that's just plain old magical.

For more handmade holiday traditions, including cute printables and yummy recipes galore, take a wander through some of my EtsyGreetings team member's blogs by clicking either arrow above.

til next time,
-Kate ♥

Pink Confetti and Elephant Dreams

Things are busy busy here in my workshop. I've been filling one custom order after the next and, seeing how winter wedding season is almost upon us, many have been of the snowflake variety.

Last night I worked in to the wee hours of the night getting this fun confetti order ready to ship out in the post today. Don't you just love those sweet colors?! And, so focused on my snowflake crafting task was I, that when I finally drifted off to sleep I dreamed of cutting happy little pink snowflakes to throw up in the air at an elephant parade. Sort of like this one, and this one, oh and this one too only brighter and in the daytime ♥

Wonder what dreams may come tonight...
elephant dream by ybryksenkova

Alone Doesn't Mean Lonely

I love this video. Actually, I adore it. Her words rang so true to me. The whole time I was watching this I felt my chest grow warmer and larger. My love for humanity just filled it up.

It is a precious and beautiful thing to be a part of this world - and there truly are so many different ways to be a part of it. Thank you to my sister for showing me this little gem ♥

DIY, Your Own Way

Why should you buy everything already made in someone else's vision? Why not have a little fun and make it yourself? As a paper crafter and artist I sometimes take for granted that not everyone has the means - or quite frankly, the time - to make their mailing tags by hand, but that doesn't mean that they don't want to embellish and decorate a set of those tags 'til their hearts content.

So, with that thought in mind I lovingly handcrafted and pieced together some basic kits for the shop. I like to think of them as a do-it-yourself for paper enthusiasts. Use each kit to decorate gifts and enclosure cards oh so stylishly, write fun little lunchbox notes, make quirky to-do-lists, embellish journals and scrapbooks...whatever you create just be sure to have fun with it and, most importantly, let your creativity guide you.

Until next time, be sure to share your love.
- Kate

Careful It's Hot

This year my long summer days were happily full of personalized requests and custom invitations. Last week I finished up the season's final order and immediately found myself immersed in a slew of handcrafted requests for Autumn and Winter weddings. Truly, I feel like I've somehow jumped from cool pink lemonade to hot apple cider in the blink of an eye - and I think I burned my tongue!

So, with the end of summer having somehow rushed by unbeknownst to me, I thought it necessary to slow down and reflect on some of my favorite summer projects for Birdcage Cards. 'Cause ya know, sometimes a girl just needs time to adjust and reflect. Here's a tiny sampling of what's been keeping my workspace aflutter...

Happy Mother's Day

I hope all you moms out there are busy being pampered and loved today - well, realistically at least the latter. It's a tough job being a mom and holidays tend to create more work for you, even if it's a holiday in honor of you - go figure. So, here's wishing all you dedicated hard working mothers a lovely day filled to the brim with with all the love and patience that you've dolled out to your family over the years.

Image above: the two variations of Mother's Day cards I made for my own mom, grandma, and sister this year! And, since the women in my family are such avid readers I made sure that each card came with a matching laminated bookmark. After the card has been long gone and recycled they will still have that little reminder of my gratitude for them floating through the pages of all the lovely books they read. Now, isn't that sweet?

Teacher Appreciation Sale

In honor of the upcoming Teacher Appreciation Week kicking off tomorrow from May 2nd to May 7th I've joined together with some of my Etsy Greetings team members and offered a sale in the shop this past week! In case anyone forgot today is the last day to pick up any set of stationery at Birdcage Cards at 15% off. Simply use the code EGteach at checkout to get your 15% off. It's a great time to grab a set of pretty stationery and give a little gift to that special teacher in your or your child's life and let them know that you truly appreciate all that they do.

Studio Snapshot

Today is all about multi-tasking. Although, really, what day isn't? I just got back from an extra long weekend at my sister's in Canada and now I'm jumping back into work.

Today is Etsy's Success Symposium and I'm hoping to pick up a heavy handful of handmade business tips throughout the day. So, I've been tuning into the livestream videos from the comfort of my beloved antique spindle legged desk in my sun-porch studio while putting together a kit of D.I.Y. Valentine's for my sister to easily assemble with my 5 year-old niece. Don't you just love a mom who takes the time to teach her children the value of crafting things by hand?!

Upcycled Tags

Remember those interesting sized kraft paper scraps? Well, voila! I turned them into pretty little thank you tags now in the shop.

In the Works and On the Table

It's been a busy month for both me and Birdcage Cards and its only half-way through. *breathe*

Here's a little sneak peak inside my workshop and a look at what's on my cutting table right now - custom bag toppers for the lovely Etsy shop Lolli Luscious. These cute packaging toppers have been producing some interseting sized scraps and I'm feeling a new project coming on. Maybe some handmade tags?