Today was the first time I tried out my new wood burning kit.   Actually the brand name is Versa Tool.   After practicing on a small piece of wood with a few of the tips, I decided to work on my big project.   My friend Steven had given me some awesome driftwood that I have been using in a display case at Jersey Made.   I had also selected this piece from his vast collection.   He said this particular piece had came from the riverbank in Delanco -  real New Jersey driftwood!!!

First I marked the letters onto the driftwood with yellow chalk.   Pencil lines would have been too hard to see and I was not couragous enough to even think about using a pen or other permanent writing tool!    After doing the outline of the letters I got braver and made a design inside the letters too.     

I think I did mighty fine for my first adventure!!!

It still needed a little something.    I had some of the light gray paint left so I brushed that onto the outer part of the letters first.   Once I was sure I liked that I added the green.    Just want to make really sure everyone could see that Jersey Made was O P E N. 

 Next week’s project will be to figure out how to hang it right by the front door.    I have a few ideas but need to make sure the sign is secure and still easily removed each night.  

As usual thanks for reading!

Come on over to Jersey Made …..

The sign will be hanging every Wed & Fri from 11-6PM, Thurs 12-6PM, Sat 10-6PM, Sun noon – 4PM.

Jersey Made, LLC

Mill Race Village

33 White Street

Mount Holly, NJ   08060

609-914-1536

11/4/09 – Excited and a little nervous I went to the presentation for the Mill Race Village merchants group.   It was great that Abbie came along to help set up the display and answer some of the questions.   The little New Jersey chocolates were very popular!

11/5/09 - Got approval to have Jersey Made included in the merchants group

11/6/09 – I gave notice at my job where I had for 4 years.   I started working there 1 day a week and was up to 3 days a week doing such a variety of tasks.

11/12/09 – I signed the lease and paid the 1st month’s rent.

11/13/09 – I was fired from my job.   This solidified that I was on the right path in pursuing Jersey Made.   I am very thankful that my other 2 bosses have been incredibly supportive.   Jeff gave me a microwave and some small furniture to use.  He has been quite encouraging.  Anthony has been great.   Always asking how things are going and once again has allowed me to adjust my schedule.   

11/14/09 – Work began to create a store at 33-35 White Street, Mt. Holly, NJ.   Gathering of NJ maps went into full force.   All my friends and family no longer have maps in their cars.   I even convinced my boss, Anthony, to go out and get his map out of the truck.   It was a messy map but definitely one of my favorites.   I started to bring over any items that would fit into my car each time I went to Jersey Made.

11/25/09 – Many friends with large vehicles arrived at my house.   Kelly & Dave arrived 1st and furniture started heading out to their van.   Just when the van was getting full Hope arrived and we started to fill her van up.   Just when we needed help with the big table Abbie & Sean arrived.   My car was filled last.   All 4 vehicles and friends traveled to Jersey Made with a stop at Wawa on the way first – now a tradition LOL!

At 1PM that day the inspector was coming for the Certificate of Occupancy.   I asked Sean and Dave to check the exit signs cause one didn’t look right but they couldn’t fix it.    I called and an MRV guy came over immediately, discovered what was wrong, went and got the part and fixed it.   Just in time for the inspector.   It passed! 

11/27/09 – Black Friday for some but for me it was all green.   Actually it was “Almost Aloe” as I spent the day painting walls at Jersey Made.   Say bye bye to more of the wallpaper!    My sis, brother-in-law and nephew came over to help out.   So much got done that day with their help!   Heidi just kept asking “ok what next?” until we had gotten it all done.  

11/28/09 – Jersey Made was sort of open to support the Creativity for a Cause event in the Mill Race Village.   Thought it was for breast cancer but that was the last cause.   So the chocolate ribbon lollipops didn’t go over as great as was hoped.   The cause was the South Jersey Food Bank this time.    It seemed like no one knew the store was open.    Steve and Tanya brought over an old sandwich board that was covered in mud and leaves.   It was a real mess.   By the end of the day Tanya had transformed this old sign with some paint and it is almost ready to be moved to the sidewalk each day. 

11/29/09 – Mom came to spend the afternoon with me at Jersey Made.   She really liked it and even took a walk over to the Bookery and Spirit of Christmas coming back with a bagful of goodies she had purchased.   That was a big giant walk for her.   I was glad to have her share in my new adventure.

12/2/09 – Official opening day.   I put green Christmas lights around the front of the store so that visitors to the village would know that something was going on at this location. 

So now here we are at 12/5/09 – exactly one month since being approved by the Mill Race Village merchants group.   I think that is a pretty awesome timeline of events.    The store is not 100% ready.  There are more artists to bring in their items, classes to be scheduled, and much more but I think Jersey Made is off to a great start!

Here are just a few cool statistics about Jersey Made….

1.   No furniture or fixtures were purchased in the setup of the store.   All items came from my home, donated by friends, and the counter came with the store. 

2.   All items in Jersey Made will be 100% created by New Jersey artists.

3.  Several classes have already been scheduled.   Jersey Made welcomes Kelly Donovan who will be teaching the Artist Trading Card Club that will meet monthly.  She is super talented and has lots of great ideas.   Wait until you see what she has planned for January Club (3rd Wednesday) just in time for Valentine’s Day.    Look out in 2010 cause Jersey Made will be the place to take some great artistic classes!

4.  The “Cupboard Under the Stairs” is quickly gaining notarity and fame.   Today it got nicknamed the Harry Potty room  LOL!!!   I am still laughing at that one…..

5.  There are already 6 artists on display at Jersey Made.   By the end of this week that will jump to 10.

6.  Already a customer has left the store and found something at home that she thought we could use and came back 2 days later to drop it off.    I had never met the woman before but thought it was so special that she did that.    The large shadow box will be used in the classroom to show off samples of art created at Jersey Made.

7.   Jersey Made is 100% green.   We recycle everything!  

Thanks for reading – hope you liked the timeline!   I thought it was pretty cool!!!

I have been transforming the little space that I maintain at art/craft shows.  It has been a slow but steady adjustment with a change made for each upcoming show.  Finally I feel like I have the display that protrays the art that I create and is pleasing to customers so they want to come in a browse in my little 10′x10′ world.

At each show I have gotten better.  In this case pictures are worth a thousand words….

This picture was taken at the Handmade Faire: Halloween Edition in October 2008.  It was a mish mash to say the least.  Plus I needed help to transport my large card display.  It was a great display and kept my greeting cards from being damaged from the torrential winds and rain however I just couldn’t get it in my car.  It is now permanently stationed at my home.  Someday it may be cut down to size but I kind of like it and use it to store items I have for sale.   The blue tarp was rather unsightly but totally necessary for the weather forecast.

Art, Wine & Music Festival June 7, 2009.   My wooden window frame/chicken wire display made its first appearance.  Cards were displayed in old drawers but looked kind of scattery.  I like hanging them up on the ribbon grid done in the old window.   This picture really helped me.

Field Dog Expo on the next weekend, July 13, 2009.   This show was a challenge.  I tried to make the best of the uneven ground (notice the 4′x4′ board under the table on the left.  But then the rain came.  I stashed as much as I could under the tables and cover what was left with plastic tablecloths.  The mudslide got the best of me and the rain never stopped.   Many of my paper items were destroyed.  Another learning experience.

Handmade at Om Baby was just last weekend.  July 11, 2009.   I attached my new logo to an old cabinet door but it wasn’t really large enough.  As I looked around all the other vendors had big plastic banners.  I just didn’t want to go plastic!   Still I liked the look of my display and the new card display seemed to help me sell more.    The new tablecloth finished off the look I wanted.  Huge difference!  The 5 yards of eggplant linen fabric look better on my table than they would have been as the jacket and slacks set that had been originally planned for it so many years ago (there was a blog on that one – hehehe).    The area behind me was a mess of weeds.  I had placed some bamboo mats down to keep it contained in the area where I sat and had to walk but I still wished I could camoflauge more of what was behind me.

And now…. The Handmade Faire: Summer of Love on July 18, 2009!   Think I finally got it figured out.   Everything looked awesome.  Took me a little extra time to set up the curtains but I was glad I did.  They were closed in the morning to block the sun coming in that side and tied back in the afternoon to catch the breeze.  A few adjustments to weight them down in the event of wind and they will be perfect.

I took the other “house” display rack and made a 2nd card display.  They looked great side by side on my table and I sold many cards.  I didn’t really need to label them.  It was great watching people sort through them and hear their comments.  My “Not G rated” card got the most attendion LOL!

My new “banner” with my logo.  I used an old cabinet door frame and a wooden plate to create an attention getting logo display.   I was quite pleased with it and got many compliments throughout the day.  Doesn’t look as great in the photo?  hmmmm – come see it in person then!!!

My Charming Again collection was very popular.  I found that many of my customers were in the young teen crowd.  Younger kids liked them too and their adult companions did not mind spending $5 to get them something they could pick out for themselves.  A few of them were purchased as gift items as well.   Expanding on this line because I have many more little things that can be charming again!

So here are my changes in latitude.   I hope the pictures helped to tell the story of how I turned my booth into something rinky dink to a serious creator who wants to sell and share!

My new anti-spam devise is in the form of a secret password.  So when leaving me a comment please mention “recycle”.   I really don’t want to purchase pills or sell the next get rich quick scheme and certainly don’t understand the spam I get that is in some foreign language.  I find that most spammers do not really read my blog.  So I am creating my own little spamguard.    Your comments are really appreciated and I don’t want to miss anything you would like to contribute.

Thanks for reading!

Over the weekend I was finishing up alot of things for the upcoming shows.  After trying to figure out the best way to make necklaces out of my antique keys I came up with an idea.  So I took 3 different kinds of string.  One was a variegated yarn made by Twisted Fiber, an artist who comes to the Kirby’s Mill Art Show & Sale sometimes.  It has been here unused for many years now.  The second was a cotton twine.  Lastly, a variety of embroidery floss pieces.  I figured out a way to rig it so I could sew the 3 together.  It made quite an interesting look.  

This led me to my Scrabble piece collection.  I spent a few summers going to yard sales and buying any Scrabble boards I could.  My limit was $1.   Friends were looking for me as well.  So I ended up with quite a jar full of the letters.  I have been looking for another project to use them.  They have already been included in scrapbook pages, attached to decorative plaques and even a greeting card made on one of the game boards.  So I started drilling holes in them so I could attach jump rings.  

The idea of this project was to use what I had at home.  Recycle old items into something new.  So a trip to AC Moore for a bag full of jump rings seemed out of the question.  I remembered a friend bringing me some wire wrapped in red plastic.  I started to take the wire apart and found that it was copper.  This would be perfect for the Scrabble pieces and even the pennies that Abbie and I had spent so much time cleaning up.   Instead of my antique keys I brought out my collection of keys to everything that I dont’ have anymore (doesn’t everyone have a collection like this?  hmmmm)   The keys were colored with alcohol inks – a messy job but a great way to get that subtle color look.  Jazzed up some boring old keys too!!!

Finally all of these projects have aligned.  LOL!!!  I will have some of them ready for Saturday’s show but hope that it is a popular item so that I can continue to make them.  There sure is enough stuff around here to keep this project going for quite awhile.  

Here is my necklace.  The heart shape is the old registration tag from my 1st cat.  Her name was Gemini – yup – a birthday present – hehe.  Such a special charm for me to add.  I plan to wear the necklace a few days this week and gather opinions.  So far the response has been really positive. 

Tell me what you think!!!  The working title for these is “Charming Again”. 

As always, thanks for reading my tale!!

 I have 2 big shows in the next 2 weeks.  Om Baby in Point Pleasant on Saturday, July 11th and the Handmade Faire – Summer of Love in Medford on Saturday, July 18th  www.HandmadeFaire.com for more info….. 

So there is much I needed to accomplish this week.  I think I did fairly well but each project took me on a search and rescue mission for that one little thing that was needed to pull it all together.   This led to finding something else that was partially finished or set aside to do someday and that created all new inspiration for me.  Somehow in the midst of this chaos that was jumbling around in my mind I managed to create many things.   My greeting card display is what I’d like to show you today.

Abbie found these 2 shelves at a yard sale for $1. each.   They were covered with dirt but it showed possibilities.  The width of the 9 squares was a perfect size for my greeting cards.  When many of my cards got ruined at a recent torrential rain storm that happened in the middle of a show, I realized I needed a way to organize my cards and have something that could be packed up quickly.   The roof of the house was removed.   Spent lots of time using my Black & Decker Mouse Sander.  The board around the outside began flaking apart.  It’s not a partical board but more like recycled chips of wood.  This changed my design plan somewhat because I wanted something that would stop the chipping from continuing.  A happy shopped does not want splinters.  I found a heavier weight tissue paper that I could decoupage around the outside edges, overlapping it at the corners.  A Clue game board was used for the back.  Gosh it was fun using my jigsaw to rip off the excess.  Of course I missed in a few spots and had to do more sanding.  A final sanding after the decoupage and I now have a great display.  Rustic, recycled and unique it will lay flat on my table to compliment my greeting cards but also be attractive on it’s own.  I still have the other shelf which I am going to leave with the roof and make another display for my space.

A trick I learned when I rented space at a store is that I am paying by the square foot.  I was reminded of this on Friday when I stopped into that same store.  Some of the spaces were so tightly filled with stuff that you couldn’t even get in there to reach it all.  At the same time I enjoyed looking at all of it and spent a great hour seeing what I could find.  The same goes for my 10′ x 10′ area that I rent at art/craft shows.  So I have decided that a price tag will be placed on my displays as well.  I could always make another.  A friend stopped over yesterday and his words were “cool shelf”.  Well it sort of isn’t a shelf but it could be…..

So my neice and family are going away for a week.  No was was scheduled to take care of the turtles.  I live 25 minutes away so it would be a challenge to drive over there every other day to feed them but I offered to take them to my house and care for them.  My neice had to consider this for awhile.  Later she agreed that it would be OK for me to babysit the turtle but I had to have detailed instructions first.  This sent her to the computer to type them up…

Hehehe – so now I am a certified care-giver for 2 turtles.  I asked their names and she said Larry and Kira but she didn’t know which one was which and assured me that calling them by name would not be helpful.  She asked if I had a lamp.  Of course I have a lamp – several as a matter of fact.  Seems the turtles need to have the light on in the daytime so they can climb up on the noodle to sun themselves.  Thought the deal was off when I asked what is a noodle…..  

I had to have an escort to my car so make sure that I put the turtle’s plastic container in just the right spot.  Then I was reminded to NOT make any sharp turns.

So for your entertainment as well, here are Larry and Kira….

At my last 2 events I have been taking pictures of my display.  It is amazing that the things you see in real life just don’t strick an idea until you see it later in a photograph.  I need new tablecloths for my display.  Something all one color.  A more attractive look - instead of the hodge podge of unmatched tablecloths, linens and doilies that I have been using.  My first instinct was to run to the store but I did not want to spend money.   So I have been pondering this for awhile.   Last night the idea came to me….stash management.  Why not shop the collection that I already have?  I remembered the eggplant color fabric that I had plans to make a jacket and slacks.   Today the search began.  I found it quickly.  The bag from Joann’s was still holding all the items I had purchased that day.  It had been moved and relocated many times over the years but I always seemed to have a special place to keep it safe because someday……someday I was going to use this beautiful linen fabric.   So here we are 11 years later and someday never came.  The 4 yards of fabric will now be transformed into covers for my tables.  The bonus is I also purchased the matching thread.  Perhaps I will keep the pattern since I still think that style will look good on me. 

So I shopped at home.  Fabric and thread I purchased on December 1, 1998 is finally going to see the light of day.  It will no longer be preserved in a plastic bag.  It felt kind of good to finally make a decision.  There is plenty of the shantung fabric to make 1 long tablecloth and 2 smaller ones custom fit to my display tables.  It will preview on July 11th at the Om Baby Art Show and then again on July 18th at the Handmade Faire “Summer of Love” at Freedom Park in Medford.  It’s gonna be a fun and artistic summer and I love that!

Today I finished my recycled window display.  It tuly is a re-created item that will be a great way for me to show my art at upcoming shows.  From trash to usefullness again…..   Lately Abbie has been using the word “upcycled” as we have been preparing for the Creative Recycling program we are doing this Saturday (see more info in the events section).  I am sort of catching on to that word and am envisioning all sorts of new meanings for it.  It amazes me how much I do creative recycling and re-creating and upcycling, almost before I even acknowledged those words.  This has all been helping me to define the nature of my art and the green directions I hope it will continue to take in the future.

So here is my display.  Made from 2 old windows that were picked off a trash pile, some old chicken wire from a friend who has guinea hens, a staple gun, a left over piece of piano hinge, felt, my little sander and about 7 hours.   Zero dollars spent but that is in no way an indication of its value now…..

The “Cutest Kid Ever” turned 3 this February 2009.  Neil is a really great kid and I wanted to create something special for his birthday.  This container once held cashews but was washed out and reused to make the gift.  I measured the tin and cut out a piece of paper to fit it.  Using the Stampin’ Up! “Leapfrogs” set I stamped it and wrote his name.  Then it was filled with some small gifts including a small triangular bag that so he could carry small cars and trucks with him wherever he went. 

Stampin’ Up! products   http://creatinginslippers.stampinup.net