Vacation Time!

VACATION!

Lorraine Inspired will be going on a temporary vacation starting December 19th until sometime in February. What does this mean exactly? Well, it means I'll have some down time to recover not only from my first market, but also my second! (Come visit me at the holidays Crafts Fair on Lee Lane in Covington, LA December 20th!) Due to all chaos that followed preparing for these fairs, I really need the time to catch up on my organization and to go over all my plans for 2015. 

What are these plans?

• More color, yay!
• Did you know March and May were Lorraine Inspired's most colorful months?

• New shapes and sizes for both push pins and magnets.
• Some of these have been making their debut at local markets.

• More price ranges.
• I love requests for larger quantities, but I don't plan on ignoring those who don't want or need such quantities.

• The introduction of vintage inspired decorative push pins, magnets, and CORK BOARDS!
• Oh hey, cork boards!

• The introduction of reclaimed wood, hand cut by me.
• I've already made the move towards greener packaging, why not greener products?

• And last but not lease, a better blogging experience.
• I've been horrible about providing good content and even worse about actually providing content. So keep an eye out for miscellaneous D.I.Y. tutorials, favorite recipes, and other little tidbits I hope you'll enjoy.

There you have it. It may not seem like much, but I have big plans and need a little time to slow down long enough to see the next project through. So, until then, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year from Kathryn at Lorraine Inspired.

Have Yourself a Handmade "TLC" Holiday

With the holidays right around the corner, emotions are all over and we tend to forget to take care not only ourselves, but the people who hold our hearts close. If you aren't one of the many who suffer seasonal mood changes, odds are you know someone who does, and you understand just how frustrating it can be to be unable to enjoy the happiness and cheer the many joyous holidays December brings us. There's something therapeutic about gift giving, so this year Have Yourself a Handmade "TLC" Holiday, share a little tender loving care, and shop handmade via The Handmade Forum.

Desert Sage Natural With a variety of organic and ethically wild-crafted cocoas and teas supported by tradition and science, give the gift that heals mind, body, and soul year round. { shop now / visit blog }		◆ ChariTea: I Will Survive ◆ With hints of vanilla and a dash of floral, this gentle black tea is specially crafted for it's ease of accessibility. ◆ Skellington's Select ◆ Pumpkin cocoa, for those days that a good book and a comfy chair is all you need.
	Dix Sterling Handcrafted, artisan earrings, bracelets, rings, and pendants. The use of precious and semi-precious gemstones combined with the simple beauty of sterling silver make for elegant gifts for both him and her. { shop now / visit blog }
◆ Fall Inspired Bracelet ◆ Beautiful purples, maroons, oranges, yellows, and white make up this wild diamond patterned bracelet. ◆ Christmas Braid ◆ This red, white, and green friendship bracelet makes the perfect holiday stocking stuffer.		Bracelets By Jen Handmade friendship bracelets (and awareness bracelets) are diligently made with high quality embroidery floss. Give a wish this holiday season, rekindle your childhood memories and pass the tradition on to the next generation. { shop now / visit blog }
	Paisley Lizard Designs Eclectic, one of a kind, boho, vintage inspired, southwestern. Jewelry for men and women, gift tags, pins, and buttons - showcase your loved one's individuality by gifting something just as unique. { shop now / visit blog }
Flaherty Naturals Natural skin care products crafted with organic and 100% pure ingredients to rejuvenate year round damage. Gift a gift that encourages the pampering we all deserve. { shop now / visit blog }		◆ Christmas Bath Gift Set ◆ Dead sea salt scrub, organic bath oil and a bath mitt in a green gift basket ◆ Organic Lip Balms ◆ Chocolate, coconut mango, lavender, strawberry, and vanilla - luscious lip balms that are good enough to eat.
	Stella Ziganti Designs Artisan jewelry featuring fine silver, sterling silver, and pure copper. Inspired by nature, the use of natural gemstones brings life to each piece. Remind your loved ones how beautiful they are, inside & out. { shop now / visit blog }

Check out these blogs for more Handmade Holiday gift ideas.

Tammy @ Paisley Lizard
Dixie @ Dix Sterlng Designs
Kei-Hawk Rose @ Desert Sage Natural
Deb @ Flaherty Naturals
Suzanne @ Stella Ziganti
Jen @ I Heart Crafting

Be sure to check out The Handmade Forum's curated Etsy Page.
Full of handmade goodies from around the world.

♪ All I want for Christmas is a few more cats... ♫ part 1

So Thanksgiving may not even be here just yet, but with thoughts of holiday shopping that needs to get done, I dived right in! To kick off the holiday season, I've decided to start with something very near and dear to my heart, cats! If you're a cat lover on the edge of becoming a crazy cat lady (or guy!) or secretly hid your love four our four legged furry friends (face it, we're all cat lovers), check out these Etsy finds and spoil yourself (or your friends if you're still trying to deny your inner cat).

Angel Kitty Figurine by Pig and Pumpkin Personalized Cat Christmas Stocking by Virlisa K Artistry Chef Kitty Gift Box Sugar Cookies by Moonlight Cookie Art
Cat Christmas Plush by Dancing in the Rains Crossword Cat Brooch by Catmade Cat Hot/Cold Rice Pack by Must Have Been The Cat!
"We Three Kittens" Christmas Card by Mad Old Cat Lady Tuxedo Cat Charm Necklace by Dapper Little Magpie Deluxe Play Place by Catastrophicreations

Handmade for the Holidays!

A local group of Etsy sellers, Team Etsy Nola, is
joining up with the Piety Street Market on
December 13th in New Orleans, LA.

Yup, that's right, we're heading to New Orleans! Team Etsy Nola will be teaming up with the Piety Street Market on December 13th from 11 AM - 4 PM

@ The Old Ironworks

612 Piety Street

New Orleans, LA

The Piety Street Market is an established market that takes place every second Saturday in the Bywater District of New Orleans. Add the twenty plus Team Etsy Nola shops to the forty plus local vendors, and you're guaranteed to find any of those last minute gifts for the holiday you still need. You can even get your gifts wrapped at Yelp's Wrapping Station!

• 20+ local Etsy sellers
• 40+ local market vendors
• Gift wrapping station by Yelp
• FREE GIVEAWAYS
• Etsy Giftcard
• Goodies from Team Etsy Nola sellers

The best part? Even if you wont be in the New Orleans area that weekend, you can purchase from each seller via Etsy! Links provided below.

Participating Etsy Sellers

Spot Colors	Junebug Art	Color + Chaos
Walking Man Studios	Fig Party	Flambeaux Design Company
Atom Rouge	Le Marigny	Crafty Home Creations
Kelly Murray	Custom Gifts by Kelli	Ubatuber Productions
Gift Horest	Lucky Nola / Fragile Bits	The Prancing Peacock
Cata Creations	Lorraine Inspired	Nola Classic Vintage
Passion Lilie	Miss Malaprop	Jackie Ehle Inglefield

The Handmade Forum Christmas Sale

Graphic by Joyce of Healing Garden Shop.

The holiday season is right around the corner. Halloween is right upon us, Thanksgiving in the US is only a month away, and then December will be here and over in flash. Get a jump start on your holiday shopping this year, shop handmade, and save on November 8th, 2014. The Handmade Forum features a number of  shops from around the world for this one day sale on November 8th from 12 AM to 12 PM EST. (Use promo code SALE2014 to save anywhere from 5-25% in each shop!) From jewelry to bath & beauty, home decor to edibles, and papercraft to knits & crochet.

Download our PFD brochure today and mark your calenders!

The Handmade Forum Christmas Sale Brochure preview.
Complete with step by step instructions for purchasing through Etsy.com

Etsy Tuesday - Flaherty Naturals

I've been wanting to do a little feature on Etsy artisans but for one reason or another, I just hadn't gotten around to it. After receiving my order from Debbie at Flaherty Naturals, there's no excuse for putting this off any longer.

I first met Debbie while signing up for the Shop Cleanse Challenge over at The Handmade Forum and since then have been building up a nice little wish list made up of her luscious lip balms, pampering body scrubs, and delicate lotions. Not only are her products made from certified organic materials, she takes advantage of her own garden and the very gifts Nature has given all of us. I may sound a little obsessive, but it's easy to see Debbie's passion in everything she does.

Strawberry lip balm from Flaherty Naturals.

A few days ago I purchased some Strawberry Lip Balm as an early birthday gift to myself. I'm a bit of a strawberry fanatic, if you ever had Mrs. Betty's strawberry pie or my fond memories of my grandmother and mother making me strawberry cake, you' understand exactly why I was so excited about opening the package as soon as I retrieved the mail. Real strawberries went into the making of this lip balm, there are no man-made preservatives or artificial fragrances.  Needless to say, it smells divine! My lips wont be chapped this winter.

Personalized, handmade gift wrap.
Talk about going above and beyond!

I also made another purchase but since it's going to be the shining addition to a holiday gift basket this Christmas, I don't want to ruin the potential surprise. All I can say is that I know it's going to be absolutely perfect. Debbie even offers a personalized gift wrapping service to add that extra something to each order. While I didn't purchase this upgrade, I was very fortunate to be on the receiving end of such a kind gesture. Her handmade gift boxes are just too cute! My lip balm really did feel like a birthday gift. And is just another reason why I have to praise Debbie for her excellent customer service. Did I mention I received cheerful and friendly updates about my order throughout the entire process? There was no way my order was going to be waiting in a hot mail box!

Healing Skin Salve "Handmade to
take care of life's little boo boo's."

To top this whole experience off, not only was I surprised with a very personalized letter thanking me for my purchase, enclosed was a sample of her Healing Skin Salve. Since I'm preparing for my first craft show (coming up soon!) I've been working away and leaving my poor fingers to suffer, what with all the saw dust, dried paint all over my hands, and the constant washing of said paint (and glue). After last night's little project, there's no telling how many paper cuts I ended up with by the time I went to bed. I try to be very mindful of taking care of my skin, but I won't lie, I do a pretty horrible job at it and if the silencing of my tormented fingers the moment I applied the salve says anything, it's just how how negligible I really am. And the smell! Oh, the smell is heavenly. I'm definitely going to have to get my hands on some more, what with how much mosquitoes love me and my desire for another tattoo.

I believe the natural properties and benefits of herbs truly Feed The Skin You're In™ and I hope you and your family will enjoy my handmade beauty products that are made in small batches using Certified Organic and 100% Pure ingredients.

 To find out more about Debbie, you can find her on shop, Flaherty Naturals on Etsy.

THF Halloween Challenge 2014

So awhile back word started to spread about a n autumn/Halloween creative challenge over at The Handmade Forum. Halloween is October, autumn is November to me.

So this is what I started with two weeks ago. There's some scrapbook paper, mod modge, an assortment of paint brushes, an x acto knife, tissue paper, miniature terra cotta pots, googly eyes, resin flowers in varying sizes, aluminium flowers, skull cameos, glitter, plastic deco skulls, feathers, a wooden picture frame, acrylic paints, and acrylic paint pens.

After all that gathering, I hardly used anything I pulled together! I used the wooden picture frame, tissue paper, and of course paint, glitter, and mod modge. But instead of creating a gothic inspired garden frame with glittered terra cotta pots, feathery thorns, and to die for flowers, I went a little simpler to avoid ending up with a frame that would look like a tornado pieced together xP After digging around in my appropriately titled unfinished wood box, I knew the letters and peg would be perfect once they were all dolled up.

Speaking of a tornado. Every time I was about ready to head outside to apply an acrylic sealer, another tornado watch would pop up!

Of course my first attempts ended horribly and while the final product might not be everyone's cup of tea, I'm very proud of how it all turned out. I'm thinking of smaller versions to pass out as gifts for next Halloween. But without further ado, here's my spooky picture frame entry for The Handmade Forum's Halloween challenge.

Mod podge went everywhere while working on creating
the texture. If it weren't for all my mistakes, I doubt the
texture would have shown up so well.

A little ghost peeking around the corner. I had so many
ideas but I think this guy adds the perfect touch.

Panic at the craft fair

Exciting news, it's official, I'll be vending at my first craft fair November 1st at The Spectrum Center. Not only will this be my first craft fair (and theirs!) but the whole event is going to be benefiting said Spectrum Center in Hattiesburg, MS. 

"The Spectrum Center is a non-profit LGBTQ+ community center. TSC’s mission is to be a resource and an advocate for the LBGTQ+ citizens of Hattiesburg, MS."

Needless to say, I'm completely out of my element and borderline freaking out. My anxiety has kept me from doing a lot and has gotten to the point where it's extremely hard not to make a worse case scenario first impression but it's becoming harder to let that anxiety get in the way of having a life. So, in a way, this fair is me taking a stand for myself. This may seem a little personal, but the reasons behind Lorraine Inspired are personal and all about growth, acceptance, and sharing a little sunshine.

So, if you're in the area, please stop by if you're looking for a great time in a wonderful community. 

Oh, and guess what? Not only will I finally be introducing my earring sets, a little birdie might be tweeting about new brooches, key chains, and hair pins on top of my push pins and magnets.