Handmade Family

Happy Handmade Holidays!

2012-01-01T17:29:00.001-08:00

The thing about being a family that believes strongly in handmade gifts and that also is a handmade business, is that we suffer a little bit from what we call the "cobblers children syndrome". What we mean by that is that the things we make for ourselves and our kids are always the last things we make. This year, it meant a very hectic week before Christmas finishing up projects and late, late nights those last two days.

On the plus side, we were able to watch The Fellowship of the Ring, and The Two Towers, as well as the first three Harry Potter movies that week too. Ha-ha-ha!

Maybe some of you remember the little house that Mr Handmade made for Abby last year. Well, He's been planning on adding little wooden houses to his product line for about a year now, and has spent his time planning on how best to do that. There were a lot of kinks to work out before it was a feasible idea. Finally, he made a new prototype for Abby's gift this year, and it came out GREAT! We're so excited about them, and have several in the works. They'll be ready for the beginning of show season in March! YAY!
Here's some progress pictures from beginning to end.
And the front of the final house. Mrs. Handmade requested a couple of hero's too, that we could give as gifts to the girl's cousin, so Captain America and the Hulk are visiting here.

At the beginning of December, Mrs Handmade had asked Abby what she was going to ask Santa for, for Christmas. After looking around the room for a moment, accompanied by the "ummmm"s of a three-year-old, her eyes settled on the picture on her pajamas...a monkey with a banana. A monkey with a Banana is what she decided she was going to tell Santa she wanted for Christmas. She remembered to tell him, and told everyone else the same thing all through the month. Somehow, in spite of that, we both forgot all about it. Fortunately, Abby said something about it as we were buckling her in the car at Nana's house... on the 23rd. We were leaving for Grammies in the morning, so Mrs Handmade had one night to make a miracle monkey munching a banana.

Luckily, she's Just. That. Fierce. Mr Handmade remembered the felt banana that she'd made a few months ago, and found it, Mrs Handmade did an awesome job stitching the monkey together, and Mr Handmade added the peeled banana button to his lapel. Finished.

Abby was very excited.

We hope the holidays were fantastic for you and your families too! Until next time, take care and be good!

2012 Handmade Family Calendar

2011-12-19T12:12:00.001-08:00

The 2012 Handmade Family Calendar is finally here!

Featuring scenes from Akira, Empire Strikes Back, Firefly: Serenity, Ghostbusters, The Legend of Zelda, Megaman, My Neighbor Totoro, Sesame Street, Spiderman, Star Wars, Tron, and Where the Wild Things Are.

The concept behind this years calendars is movies and dress up. Mr Handmade chose 12 of his favorite movies shows and video games, and illustrated them...with a twist. He came up with a set of rules. The kids would be the main protagonists, and would get accurate, high quality costumes for their scenes. Adults would take supporting roles, and their costumes would be thrown together. The settings for the scenes would also be things from around the house, We wanted them to be plausible, but also obvious what it is supposed to be.

We're really excited about this one, and love how well it all printed! Something that I planned for this year is the reusability of the images. I wanted all the pictures to be able to be removed from the calendar as a whole and be used as pictures for the kids rooms, without there being holes visible on them.

Calendars are available in our Online Store at handmadefamily.indiemade.com, at Fusion in Chesterfield mall, at E.L. Riley in downtown Kirkwood, or at I Am What I Am On Mainstreet in mainsteet Saint Charles.

Until next time, take care and be good!

Your friend,

Jeffrey

Handmade Family 2012 Calender Giveaway!

2011-12-01T19:15:00.000-08:00

Over the course of the last month, Mr Handmade has been filling all his free time finalizing the illustrations for the 2012 Handmade Family calender. Now it is nearly finished and will be ready to send to the printers next week! Yay! We're really excited about this years calendar, featuring the kids dressed up as favorite movies and shows, and us parents trying to keep up with them! Ha-ha-ha! At the same time, we've also been running a contest over on our Facebook fan page.

At the beginning of November, Mr Handmade decided that on December 1st, he would write down the names of all the people who have "liked" our page and do a drawing to thank them for supporting us this year. The winner would get a Free copy of the 2012 calender, and there would also be a couple of runner-up prizes too! So, with the help of his little assistant, here's the results of this years Handmade Family 2012 Calender Giveaway!

The fourth place prize, a set of Pin Back Buttons goes to...
Sheri Grau!
Third place, a pair of Forest Sprite postcards goes to...
Curtis Ellis!
Second place, a signed print of the Sesame Street Illustration goes to...
Jessica Ballard!
and finally, First place, a signed copy of the 2012 Handmade Family Movie Extravaganza Calender goes to...
Kayla Lynn Jarnac!

Thank you everyone for supporting us and following us either here or on our Facebook page. We really do appreciate it.

One last note, before I sign off to go work in the studio, we are in the process of setting up a dedicated website with a store, galleries, news and blog at www.handmadefamily.indiemade.com. As you may have noticed, the url has the host carrier on it. Apparently, somebody has already taken handmadefamily.com, and so right now we are deciding what we would like our domain name to be. Until then, I'll be posting both here and there, and will let you know when we make the official move.

Until next time,

Win a Kermit Marker Sketch

2011-11-21T19:14:00.000-08:00

Mrs Handmade and I are long time Muppet fans. We enjoy them as much today as we did when we were kids, and we are all looking forward to the new movie coming out on November 23. In his speech to Doc Hopper at the end of the original Muppet movie, Kermit says:

“I’ve got a dream too. But it’s about singing and dancing and making people happy. That’s the kind of dream that gets better the more people you share it with. And…well…I’ve found a whole bunch of friends that share the same dream, and that makes us kind of like a family.”

We take a lot of joy in what we do, and with sharing it with you all. In that spirit, from now until when Mr. Handmade manages to check our FB page on November 23, we will be having a giveaway drawing for this marker sketch of Kermit and his banjo. All you have to do is leave a comment on the photo thread on our fan page telling us who your favorite Muppet is.

And like Kermit says, it gets better the more people you share it with, so let your friends know too!

Weekend Roundup

2011-11-20T20:41:00.000-08:00

It's a good life, and don't let anyone tell you it's not. Trying to keep up with a couple of different blogs, and get stuff made is...interesting. Unfortunately, it's our correspondence with you all that seems easiest to let fall to the wayside.
Things are busy here, as we wrap up outdoor chores in the last few beautiful days of autumn and prepare to bundle up indoors with indoor games and projects and cabin fever.
Mr. Handmade rearranged the living room, and gave it a much needed deep cleaning. No more dustbunnies under that couch!
The air was a bit chilly (it IS November after all), but the diapers, socks and shirts looked so festive blowing in the wind and sunshine.
Our little adventurer. Olive knows no fear, and insists on climbing everything at the park and going down the slides all by herself.
Just love this little peeking smile around her milk. Ha-ha-ha!
Abby was just in a fingerpaintin' mood the other day. She did four or five paintings...of camels? We wonder where she got the idea of painting camels from, but 4 times out of 5 when she makes something, it's a camel. Or a mail box. Mr. Handmade asked her if it was all ready to go in the shop. She said "Yes, that's why I'm making it all beautiful."
Speaking of the shop...Mr Handmade put this new display together for his marker sketches. He'll do a proper post about them soon. As soon as he gets the calender he's illustrating finished.

At the park.
Mr. Handmade's friend, Chet's car. It's currently being dismantled by the boys to be refinished.
Don't you just Love Olive's monster feet?
Mrs. Handmade hard at work making capes in the studio.

Not pictured:
-Getting together with our crafty friends at Fusion for our Pre-Holiday meeting/pep rally.
-Our trip to the Store Supply Warehouse to pick up fixtures for art and craft shows, fairs and festivals.
-The look on Abby's face when I made her eat Cream of Wheat
-Trips to the shop to drop off custom orders (did you see Mrs. Handmades breast cancer apron?)

Fight like a Supergirl...in the kitchen

2011-11-16T21:22:00.000-08:00

This is a custom order for someone who saw the Supercape at Fusion. Her mother is a survivor and, as much as she loved the idea of it, she didn't quite see her mother decked out as a superhero. Enter the Fight Like a Supergirl apron!

Double layer cotton fabric with ribbon trim and handy-dandy pockets.

Mr. Handmade took a cute picture of me with baking props and everything; but really, who are we kidding?

Fight Like a Supergirl

2011-10-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

In honor of breast cancer awareness month, I came up with my best superhero cape ever!

A few years back, one of my coworkers was diagnosed with breast cancer. Before she began treatment, I was honored to sign a pair of pink boxing gloves to encourage her to "fight like a girl." And boy did she. Later she did a photo shoot with the gloves, and I can only imagine what kind of strength she had and still has. She and my feisty aunt, who also beat this villainous disease, are my inspirations for this most super of capes.

The cape is available at both Fusion in Chesterfield Mall and I Am What I Am in old town St. Charles. They are $45 with mask included and 50% of the sales go to breast cancer research. Also available are pink ribbon neck wraps and eye pillows (also 50% donated) and satin pink ribbon no-sew iron on decals for $1 (100% donated).

Thin permanent markers instantly turn this cape into a wearable get well soon card.

Below is Jessi, owner of I Am What I Am, standing next to the cape at her shop's Progressive Pink Party last weekend. She had a close friend who is unfortunately no longer with us, and although I did not know her, if she was Jessi's friend, I'm sure she was a supergirl in her own right.

Becoming a Handmade Family Part 2: Strange Folk

2011-09-25T22:10:00.000-07:00

I think I mentioned in my last post, that one of the changes that we've made in the last year, by forming Handmade Family and joining the local independent craft community, we've made a lot of new friends (and continue to make new friends all the time). We're edging up to the precipice of starting to do shows now, and that kind of makes us nervous. Part of preparing for it for us is that we go to different shows to meet people, and also to get a feel for what different ones are like. We've been to some okay ones, and some good ones...

This weekend, we went to the Strange Folk Festival in O'fallon Illinois. It was AWESOME. Everything about it, from the general atmosphere to the variety of artists made it feel like it would be a very good fit for us next year.

We got to see several of our friends there, and the girls got some fresh air, probably the BEST cupcake I've ever had, and before we left they got to play on the playground.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera :( so I didn't actually get any photos myself, and I would love to give a shout-out to all our friends, but there's just not room. I would like to mention our friend Andrea of Zenbot Baby though, because her husband (who I'm friends with on google+, and who I narrowly missed meeting in person today) DID take a picture of this super cool upright bass made out of an upcycled bicycle. When I saw this thing I was just floored by how cool it is.

There was some part of us that wasn't really sure about the whole show aspect of this business/life, but I think we both came away from this event inspired.
Until next time, take care and be good!
Your friend,
Mr. Handmade

Becoming a Handmade Family

2011-09-23T12:02:00.000-07:00

It's been a little over a year now since I left my full-time job to become a creative freelancer and stay-at-home dad. Some of the time the change has been frustrating, or worrying...there's a lot of waiting involved in this lifestyle. Mostly though, the changes have been infinitely rewarding as I've developed very deep connections with my daughters, I've had the time to make lifestyle choices that focus more on slowing down and enjoying the days, and Mrs. Handmade and I have come a long way toward growing together as a handmade family.

One of the things that I've been watching change and develop over the year is our back yard. Last spring I dug up two garden beds, and planted vegetables in one of them. I had some limited success, but I learned a lot from the experience, and next year should be better. One thing that I learned is how much better everything tasted!

Another thing that I learned is it's a constant battle. Ha-ha-ha! A little bit of work on a small plot goes a long way, though!

One last change for this day, is the wonderful friends we've made since joining this community of crafters and handmade artisans. One of our new friends Dana, of Dana's Creations painted Abby's face for her last weekend. She was so excited! When we got home, she wanted to get some pictures taken, so we went down to the little thicket in our backyard. It's amazing how much she's grown in the past year, from a 2-year-old toddler, to a 3-year-old little girl! She was even doing poses for me, of what she thought a flower faerie would do. Ha-ha-ha!

Thanks for looking and until next time, take care and be good!

Your friend,

Mr Handmade

New Wine Cozy & Coasters

2011-09-17T23:41:00.000-07:00

Introducing a cute new gift set!

This design was inspired by a friend's recent marriage, as no one in the Handmade Family drinks wine. Now if I made a beer coozie, that would get used. Although these days with kids and work and work and work, it probably wouldn't be that often.

Large enough to hold a wine or champagne bottle.

Comes with 4 padded coasters. Sorry folks, glasses & wine not included.

The coasters fit nicely in the bottom of the bag for easy storage & carrying.

If you're interested, you can hop on over to our Etsy shop to pick one up (blank or personalized), or just contact us. Embroidery is available and I have lots of other fabric if this one doesn't float your boat.

Thanks for reading!
Mrs. Handmade

Goin' off the Grid

2011-09-13T18:15:00.000-07:00

Jeffrey got a clothesline for his birthday from his parents. He recently dug and cemented holes and is now hanging our laundry out for all to see. He's quite excited about this, and wanted a cool bag to carry clothespins in. So after some discussion and a couple of nights of planning and working, I bring you...

All of the material was from a large bag of fabric scraps (5 large bags to be precise) that was given to my by a friend. Some was kept, some was trashed, and the rest was given to The Upcycle Exchange (which if you haven't yet checked out, it's definitely worth a look).


It's got a large opening with not top closure for the clothespins.

The top flap has no opening underneath, but has snaps so he can hang it from the clothesline.

The straps button on, so if he wants to he can remove them while it's hanging.

Doesn't he look so cute getting ready to skip out on some of our electricity bills?

What The Rest Of The Family Is Up To

2011-09-03T21:44:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when you go downstairs to change laundry while stamping is going on. Ha-ha-ha!

In related news, I've decided to start posting the kid's art on a new blog, Take Care and Be Good. We really do a lot of things together, but they don't always relate to what's going on here so...there you go. Thanks for checking in and until next time, take care and be good!

Faeries, Sprites and the Handmade Life

2011-08-15T20:57:00.000-07:00

Oh, our poor, neglected blog...It's not that Mrs. Handmade and I don't have anything to say, summer has just been BUSY. I don't think that either of us were ready for how full our schedule would be with two ~~wild~~ active little girls, my freelance work, working at Fusion keeping inventory up and getting extra inventory ready to put in I Am What I Am On Mainstreet, a shop down on Mainstreet, Saint Charles that features handmade art, jewelry, clothes and decor.

Handmade family is the featured local artist(s) for the month of August, and we're so happy to be there! We did a little interview with them over on their blog, you can check it out here!

In addition to all the wonderful items Mrs. Handmade makes, like children's capes and masks, and key chains. We also feature illustration by me to fill in those gaps in your perfect children's bed or playroom. I did 6 new illustrations to be featured downtown this month, and thought I'd share a little bit about them with you.

Here they are after being inked and taped down to boards for coloring. Each illustration is 6 X 6 inches. This gave me enough room to really make a scene, but was still small enough that I didn't get over my head. I've been interested in faeries and sprites since I was a kid, and well...I felt like drawing some. Ha-ha-ha!
So after inking, I put in a light sepia wash to give the paper some tone, and then using transparent washes start laying in colors and textures.
Here it's almost finished. I was originally planning on those being big teeth on his front, but as I thought more about it when coloring, I decided that it made more sense for them to be like flower petals. Add a little splash of color.
Here's the finished piece still on the board, next to one of it's mates. You can see that I use a pretty big scrap area to test my colors before putting them on the picture. Maybe one of these days I won't be quite so timid in my painting.
The finished piece under glass. Usually I scan things before framing them so that I have a good head on picture, but...It was late, and I forgot. Anyway, that's why it's kind of tilted at an angle. The flash just wrecked it otherwise.

Got this pic of the girls playing house the other day. Unfortunately it took too long to find the camera, so I missed the part where Olive was laying on the floor looking through the front door. Those kids inspire me every day.

Until next time, take care and be good.
Your friend,
Mr. Handmade

New Line of Men's Keychains/Luggage Tags

2011-05-29T21:06:00.000-07:00

With Father's Day just around the corner, I've got all new ribbons just perfect for dads!

Is he a superhero? A sports nut? How about just a little punky? There's one for every man in the bunch.

These can be put on any color backing and a name or sports number can be added as well.

They are large enough to fit over a man's wrist. I asked Jeffrey to model one and, of course, Abigail couldn't be left out of the fun.

Licensed keychains are $7.50 and unlicensed ones are $6. Embroidery is an additional $2.

You can pick yours up at Fusion in Chesterfield mall (Wed.&Thurs.-12-7, Fri.&Sat.-12-9, Sun. 12-4) or email us at handmadefamily@redherringillustration.com. Or you can just leave a comment below with your contact info.

I Am What I Am on Main Street Grand Opening

2011-04-10T11:01:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Handmade mentioned the other day that she is excited and kind of amazed about all the new friends we have made since starting to work together on Handmade Family. It's like a whole new culture has opened up to her. One of the great things about this community, is that it really IS a community. Maybe I'm wrong about this, but it really seems to me that the sense of belonging to something that's bigger than us (whether that's sports, church, facebook... whatever) is something that we're all looking for.

One of our new friends, Jessi Gisburne from I Am What I Am is celebrating (celebrating? is that the word I'm actually looking for? I just checked her blog, and she says "3 days of celebration", so that's what I'm going to go with too! :) the grand opening of her new shop on Main Street, St Charles. We went in to see her yesterday, and are very excited about the new space she shares with Bliss Eleven, a local photography studio. Stop by and see for yourself, this coming Friday, April 15th - Sunday, April 17 they are kicking off the new storefront with prizes, giveaways, face painting, free food and wine.

Other artists featured in the shop include:
-Bella Due
-The Crafty Geek
-Dana's Creations
-Letters by Landmark
-Pink Seven Design
-RHD Missouri
-Villa Design

So much super-cool, handmade art in one place, and awesome people to share it with! Hope to see you all there!

Crafty Memories

2011-04-01T17:15:00.000-07:00

So I'm offering a few art projects for the Fusion Arty Parties. When working through what and how I wanted to do, it made me think back on lots of crafting memories. My mom has always been crafty, so it's kinda "in me" i guess. The only problem was that she really couldn't teach me any of her crafts 'cause we butted heads too much. Sorry about that, mom, but if you're reading this know that you were my first (and continuing) influence.

If you've ever been to my house and used the restroom you've seen one of my earliest attempts at cross-stitching. It's a little bear holding a bunch of balloons that says 'love lifted me.' It's horrible. Seriously. I can't even begin to tell you how many things are wrong with it, starting with the fact that there are no strings on the balloons, so he's not even attached to them. But I don't care about all of that. I was in 4th grade and I was so proud of it. Hence, it has lived in every bathroom since I moved out of my parents' house.

We did a lot of crafts in Girl Scouts, which I was a part of from kindergarten until twelfth grade. I had some awesome troop leaders (again, if you're reading, know that your influence is appreciated, as well) and got to learn some neat stuff and experiment with lots of different media. I remember making turkey table ornaments for senior citizen homes, organic face masks (I can't believe I put oatmeal on my face!), and my favorite of all time...the latrine buddy. We did a lot of camping, so we used a bath towel to make an apron that had pockets for all of our bath items. I loved making it and using it. Man, now I'm wishing that I still had it.

Another vivid picture that came to my mind revolves around the year my school began a student council. Stupidly I decided to run for class president, ignoring the fact that I was literally a pariah. Anyway, bright posters with puffy paint were appearing all over the school. I don't remember if I wanted to be different or that my parents were already poor from hockey so i didn't want to ask them to buy me supplies, but I found a piece of burlap and proceeded to stitch out "Vote for Amy, She's not Lame-y" or some such stupidness. I remember stitching a border of some kind and probably a few flowers; in the end I must say that I was pretty darn proud of it. I recall excitedly posting it on the bulletin board, while at the same time beginning to hear the negative comments. Those were generally hard times, but I do remember sitting in class and looking up at that sign. I knew I didn't have a chance of being elected, but I was really proud of it, and I guess I still am.

So anyway, I have decided to offer tie dying t-shirts and a minimal-sew felt jewelry roll (pictured here). Jeffrey is offering a Japanese-style hand-bound journal. There are lots of other options offered by other Fusion artists, too. Can't wait to do the first party! If you are looking for a cool artsy experience for a birthday party or such, check it out!

Till next time,
Amy

Happy St. Pat's Day!!!! Abigail was a SUPER leprechaun!

2011-03-17T19:24:00.001-07:00

Jeffrey and I had been throwing the idea around about going to the big St. Pat's parade this year. I'm usually not off if it's during the week, but spring break gave me the option to go. The forecast was beautiful, and we knew Abby would love a parade. So in true Amy fashion, we made the decision late last night to actually do it, and at midnight I had a brainstorm. We needed shamrock capes! Three hours later I've got a cape and mask for Abigail, and an extra set for her to share with her friends.

Even superheroes need a lift sometimes.

Watching the parade and protecting the citizens of Shamrock City.


No, Alex is not picking her nose. She's adjusting her mask.

She was super excited to see it this morning and wore it from the time we left the house at 11am to around 6pm when we were eating dinner with Nana and Papa Jim. The house that we watched the parade at was absolutely PERFECT. It was on the parade route, fenced in, and had a climber for the kids to play on. No 'keeping super-leprechaun on a short leash so she doesn't get squashed by people' for this mommy! She had a blast playing with all of the other kids (I brought extra masks, too, so they could all be supers). Olivia had her first crawling through the grass experience; no sensory issues for that little one! She went everywhere, and even climbed up the little slide over and over and over again. It was a great and exhausting day, and I'm very excited about the possibility of crawling into bed very soon.

The privacy fence was just in front of the climber, so the kids could still see the parade when they were up there. Just to the left in the pic is a chain link fence.

Olivia is becoming quite the 'super' herself.

Missy & Abby holding hands after the parade

Local Artists Shout Out

2011-03-09T18:41:00.000-08:00

Wow! Two posts in two days?! Am I crazy, or do I just have work piling up on my table that I'm putting off? Actually, it's neither. Just wanted to give a shout out to some local artists getting ready to open up a new shop on main street in old town, St. Charles...Just down the road from us, and in a REALLY good location to get a lot of shopping traffic.

I Am What I Am on Main Street is a local artisan handmade marketplace where you'll find one of a kind and completely unique items handcrafted by local artists including clothing, jewelry, accessories, gifts, sculptures, and so much more.

Pocket Full of Poseys Handmade hair accessories, bags and hats. A lot of really cute stuff for your daughter or girlfriend.
Kaylee Bug Design Really wonderful design work from logos to business cards and brochures. It looks like she does both custom work, as well as pre-made, stock designs.
I Am What I Am really cool and cute jewelry and buttons with stamped sayings. My daughter has been eyeing them at the Fusion shop lately.
Bliss Eleven portrait, senior, kids, wedding and commercial photography. I really like the high key color in the children's portraits, it gave the pictures the feel of a crisp spring day after a rain.
Posh Principessa Super cute clothes and accessories for little girls. I noticed that there is also a boys section, but since I have two daughters I didn't really look too hard at it.

In the spirit of full disclosure, they're also running a facebook fan page contest, which seems like a great way to get more people looking at their stuff, which is all beautiful. So go check it out!

Until next time, take care and be good!
Handmade Family

Handmade Family: Daily Life

2011-03-08T19:56:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody! I'm kicking off a new project that's going to cross over between here and my Red Herring Illustration blog. This is a double post, but I promise not to make it a habit. I like the idea of keeping mostly photos of what we've made, and us using them here, and illustrations and drawings mostly over there.

We've had super heroes on the brain here lately...Last week, Handmade Family set up our space in the Fusion Art Co-op in the mall (you can check out the post here). Amy's making capes, and has started finishing up the hero costumes with masks and cuffs to go along with them. Abby is super-cute. She tried on the mask for the first time last night, and was running around in her jammies, pointing up and declaring, "To the rescue!!!". It's funny watching her costume combinations, too. This afternoon, she'd added a Halloween pumpkin lantern, and tonite when we were getting ready for bed, she said she need super-hero pajamas...NOT, her dog pajamas. Okay, Superman it is. Ha-ha-ha!

So, where am I going with this? My plan is to do a cross-over between here and the Red Herring Illustration blog, with illustrations and photos and downloadable goodies that will be available on my website, chronicling our daily, handmade lives. Activities, books and movies, snack-time and of course Daily Life illustrations and comics. All of this will be compiled into a small, themed book. If all goes as planned (and to be honest, I'm nervous about that part), then I will be able to release my little 'zine every two months. The theme for issue one is Super-Heroes, and I hope that you all will join me for a little fun.

That's it for now. Until next time, take care and be good!
Your friend,
Jeffrey

Handmade Family at Fusion

2011-03-02T18:01:00.000-08:00

Big news for the beginning of March! A couple of weeks ago, we applied to be vendors at Fusion, an artist co-op whose main purpose is to offer a unique blend of art, crafts, local music, and classes to the St. Louis area. Located on the second floor of Chesterfield Mall, by Sears, the location is awesome, and we're so excited about the opportunity!

The last couple of weeks have been SUPER busy. Between, deciding on our mission and settling some branding issues, getting all our signs and graphics together, and then finding displays that both fit our image of who we are but also would fit in with the artists already in the shop... it's surprising that we had time for anything else. We went in last night to set up our display space, and get our contract and orientation taken care of...

Amy did a great job of getting plenty of product together to fill the shelves. Bean-bag games, baby blankets, neck wraps and key chains. Not to mention the super hero capes! On top of that, I brought in some paintings and prints to round out our selection. Not too shabby of a start! Our business cards came in today, and I have some more artwork to add, so we'll definitely be back in the next couple of days. We'll also be working four days a month, so come on down to see us!

And finally, our little family keeps growing up before our eyes. I remember when Abby was just a little baby, and now she's so big and reading to her baby sister...I tell you what, the days just fly by.

Bunk Bed Curtains. How cool is that?

2011-02-15T20:38:00.000-08:00

When Abigail got her big girl bed two Christmases ago, I went ahead and made up the top bunk. Don't ask me why. It's not like we were going to have any sleepovers anytime soon. Or even that we let her see that anyone could even get up there. But I did, and over the course of a few months the sheet slowly slid off the edge of the top bunk. It gradually got lower and lower until she started requesting it be pulled down for nigh-night time. I don't blame her! How cool is that to have your own little fort? So we went on like this for I don't know how long. Every night and nap time pulling it down then flipping it back up when she awoke. Occasionally a corner would fall off completely and we would have to fix it (the stuffed animals that live on the top bunk came in particularly handy for this). Eventually Jeffrey got sick of how trashy it looked and asked me to make a curtain for it. So we pondered and figured and bought fabric. Then about a month later I finally got around to it (if for no other reason than to get Jeffrey off my back). Abigail could move the curtain without any assistance from us, and it had cool ladybugs on one side and elephants on the other...she was in heaven. It also helps keep her sleeping area a bit darker for nap and mornings.

Originally I made it one long curtain and imagined it being able to be pushed completely to one side. I failed, however, to take into account that when Jeffrey put up the rod that there would be a support in the middle. So after a few months of just pulling the curtains to the middle, I finally took them down and made them two separate pieces. I also top-stitched around the edges to give it a bit more of a finished look and put more loopholes for hanging. It is so much nicer to be able to part the curtains to either side and actually get to her bed.

If you are interested in having a custom set made for your youngster's bunk bed let me know! I'm kind of itching to do a frilly pink one (but certainly not for Abby).

Paper Dolls

2011-02-14T22:14:00.001-08:00

Toys, toys, toys... I was thinking the other day that our lives have revolved around kids and making sure that there were plenty of (quality) toys to play with for a long time. I think the house will seem just a little bit empty when the girls outgrow their toys. Of course, we have a few friends who are young enough that don't have kids yet, and a few friends with kids that are old enough, that a new batch of kids will be along to play before too long.

I try to make time regularly to sit and draw, cut paper, paint or glue stuff with Abby. Sometimes it goes really well, and sometimes...well, lets just say that a nearly two-year-old, and a nearly one-year-old don't always mix well with arts and crafts time. At any rate, these sessions often evolve into something more than I intended, depending on Abby's interest in what I'm doing, and she was very interested in the drawings that she named "mommy and daddy", so we cut them out and mounted them on sticks.

The imaginative play that comes out of simple things like this is incredible.
On a more recent trip into cut paper puppet land, I got a little more involved, and actually used scrap-booking paper to make some pretty rad clothes for him. This one was a little wider, so that makes him a little more unwieldy, but I actually had popsicle sticks this time, instead of bamboo skewers like I've used in the past. On another note, I think the last ones were a little more successful because the pose was a bit more neutral.
We have fun making stuff together, and it's always great to see her sitting in the sun at the table, working busily on whatever.

Finally, a little bonus picture...It's funny to me that the one picture I took that day where I wasn't trying to get her to look at me Abby decides to be herself, and photo-bomb her sister.
Until next time...Take care and be good!

...Homemade Family?

2011-02-08T11:34:00.000-08:00

I've been having these tiny heart-attacks the last week every time I type or post a url for Handmade Family. I think to myself, "have I been posting it as Homemade Family?". It might not seem like a big deal...I mean, who doesn't like to eat homemade cookies, or to receive a card that was made by their grandchildren? These things are wonderful and I don't want to refute that, but there IS an important distinction that has to be made between "Homemade" and "Handmade", and that is what I would like to talk a little bit about today.

"Homemade" means that something was made in the home, and not by some giant, faceless, multinational company. Usually it's personal and made with love, but that does not mean that there is necessarily any quality control. Valentines day is coming up soon, so this morning Abby (our nearly three-year-old daughter) and I made cards for her grandparents and godparents. I am sure that they will love them. That being said, it's hard to write straight letters or cut straight lines when there is a little girl working around and underneath you. On top of that, her design choices are often...suspect.

On the other hand is the word "Handmade". This also implies that something was not made by some giant, faceless, multinational company. Often it is made in the home and is personal and made with love. But to say that something is handmade is also to imply a level of quality and care in the craftsmanship that machines and factories can not afford to us. One other quality that handmade items have to offer is individuality. There are always differences that reflect the individual crafts-persons mood and temperament as well as what they feel is right for a particular piece. It's this individuality that some would call the "soul" of an object.

So, here's the question: How can we tell if something could or should be called "handmade" or merely "homemade". My take on it is that we all need to be honest with ourselves as artisans and craftspeople. We'll nearly always be proud of the things that we spend the time to make, and the folks we show it to may even feed into that by letting us know how much they like it too. It's important to note that there is a difference between liking something that your friend made, and being willing to pay money for it. So, that's my rule of thumb. If I honestly wouldn't pay money for it, it shouldn't go in the shop.

Pictured here is the prototype version of my handmade play town and people. When you're considering making a new product, it's always important to design and make a couple first as homemade gifts so that you can see what sorts of stumbling blocks you may meet, how long it takes to make, and whether people actually like it. We still have a little bit of testing to do on this one, but I think it is a good idea, and possible to make it and still be able to feed the kids, so I'm very excited about the play village.

Our mission is about play and comfort, family and imagination, but it is also about quality. The kind of quality and attention to detail that you can only get from handmade.

Abby's new "dress"

2011-02-05T15:31:00.000-08:00

Due to the snow I had three and a half days off of school last week. It was a wonderful impromptu vacation with the family. Both Jeffrey and I got some work done, and we all got lots of playing and cuddle time! It was pretty much awesome.

I also took a break from making things for other people to make something for Abigail. Jeffrey fell in love with the idea of a pinafore. This is basically an apron that looks like a dress; it really is pretty cute. So Wednesday night I went to work on it. I haven't made too many pieces of clothing, so every one is a new adventure. This pattern was fairly easy to follow, and I got to make my first attempt at gathering. I think it turned out pretty well. The only problem is that now Jeffrey wants five more for her.

Abigail loves her "beautiful dress." Apparently it is a perfect compliment to her clompy shoes coming down the hallway.

Handmade Family

2011-02-02T21:04:00.000-08:00

Accessories and Gifts to Grow With

Handmade Family is a collaborative effort between husband and wife team Amy and Jeffrey Johnson. In addition to graphic design (Jeffrey) and teaching (Amy), they've been creating their own family since they met in college in 1997. They now have two young girls and would like to share their imagination with all types of families, whether they're old, young, or yet to be.

Jeffrey's talents include illustration, watercolor painting, printmaking, and woodcrafts, just to name a few. With a Bachelor in Fine Art, he left the 9 to 5 world of graphic design to answer a higher calling...that of stay-at-home-dad and creative freelancer. Through his studio, Red Herring Illustration and Graphics, he produces everything from business logos to assets for the gaming industry.

Amy's sewing and embroidery machines are constantly humming. Whether it's crafting superhero capes, bean bag games, or extra large and snuggly receiving blankets, she loves to create things that bring joy and comfort.

Whether you're looking for a blanket to welcome a little one into the world with, a picture to add a splash of color to the play room, or a game to play on a rainy day, we may have just the thing you're looking for...or didn't know you were looking for.

Check out our shop on etsy: handmadefamily.etsy.com
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