Monday 28 February 2011

Handmade Bunny Shaped Buttons


I "think" I'm finally caught up on my custom orders - the last batch is drying and once they're ready I can take the pictures and mail them off to their new homes. I'm very excited to be caught up for the most part so I can move on to some of my new creations such as these adorable bunny shaped buttons http://www.etsy.com/listing/69062092/six-handmade-large-rabbit-or-bunny. These shaped buttons wouldn't work very well as buttons that need to be opened and closed through a button hole since their ears would snag and probably break off. They'd be adorable for use to decorate Easter Cards with though or as an embellishment on something that didn't have to be opened and closed. I created these originally since I wanted to use them on my Easter cards but I fell in love with them and thought they'd be a really wonderful addition to my Etsy shop. I hope you like them as well. I'm loving the shaped buttons more and more and while they are more labour/labor intensive I think they're well worth the effort.

Sunday 27 February 2011

Red Riding Hood Buttons.


Well I've been back from vacation for a week and am back into buttons big time. I have a large number of custom orders I'm working on and I'm trying to balance that with making the buttons that I find fun. Lately I've been into making fairy tale and story book themed buttons and I love these Red Riding Hood Buttons http://www.etsy.com/listing/68979688/10-red-riding-hood-buttons-set-of-10. I think these would look adorable on a child's outfit or as special embellishment to items in their room. There are so many things that you can do with buttons besides just using them on clothing. I have so many ideas but now I just need to find the time to bring them to fruition!



Saturday 19 February 2011

Heading Home and So Excited!

I've had a wonderful time in Costa Rica and will be starting the trek home in about an hour. I am so excited to be heading home (yes even to the snow!) This has been a fantastic vacation and I love Costa Rica and will be back another time for sure.

I'm excited to get home first to my son and family but I'm also looking forward to getting back to my handmade buttons. I plan to use the time on the plane to organize my custom orders and plan a strategy for moving forward with the projects I have been dreaming of this week. My new supplies arrived while I was away so I need to go to the post office to pick them up and then I can move forward full speed.

I want to incorporate some more artisan buttons into my line - ceramics and glass in particular and perhaps even get back to some handpainted wooden buttons. We'll see. I do know I have to make a concerted effort to launch these as they take a lot more time and planning than the resin/acrylic buttons not to mention several stages of creating. I do think they're worth it though.

I also haven't forgotten that I reallly want to work on my sewing skills this year and while I've been away I have also decided I want to incorporate more of my original art into my buttons. That means I have to improve my graphic design skills. All of this has to happen while I'm working at my day job. I will have a couple full days before I head back to work and then next weekend I have another three day weekend coming up. There never seems to be enough time in the day though for all my ideas.

Anyway I am back and energized and ready to get back to handmade buttons!

Friday 18 February 2011

Last Full Day of Vacation

Today is my last full day of vacation here in beautiful Liberia, Costa Rica. I'm sitting by the beach writing this and enjoying the beautiful sunshin and the nice cooling breeze coming off the Pacific Ocean. I have had a wonderful time but am looking forward to getting home and back to my buttons and other ideas.

I have a number of packages to pack and some custom orders to get started on. Tomorrow will be mostly a day of travel but then I still have two full days before I have to head back to my day job. I've been trying to focus a little bit during my vaacation on the direction I'd like to take my shop. I have some ideas but only time will tell if I think these are developed enough to actually put into practice. I do know I have to find a balance between my custom orders and the things I want to do just for me. I also want to start doing things for my home. We've been there for three and a half years now and have done little to no decorating. I think its time to make my house a home and inject some personality into it. I also want to organize and redesign my office and creative spaces. I have packed in far too much extra stuff into my tiny office and am feeling a bit stifled creatively. The problem is that I love doing so many different types of creating from glass to ceramics to metal smithing etc. My main profitable endeavour though is by far my buttons. I haven't really seen anything exactly like them and because of this they seem to be quite popular. Because they're popular its hard to find time to experiment with my other ideas and I'm not able to get enough of a selection to actually see if my ideas are something that can take off. In my dreams I do dream of being able to quit my day job and earn a living creating. I know this would take the magic and a lot of the joy out of it though because it would put pressure on me to make money to pay the bills. Right now I don't have that pressure and any sales are able to fund new and fun things.

Today as I sit by the beach everything seems possible. Tomorrow as I travel back to reality I hop0e to bring that sense of possibility with me.

Thursday 17 February 2011

There is a time to relax and a time to make buttons!

Right now I'm writing this from a sunny beach in Liberia, Costa Rica. It is about 90 degrees fahrenheit and there is a beautiful breeze coming in off the Pacific Ocean. The tide is out now. I've just had a leisurely breakfast and my husband has gone diving. I've been here a few days and absolutely love it. I have taken a much needed break from button making but now that I've been away from it for a few days my mind is wandering back to button designs and I'm starting to think of all the things I want to make. New ideas are bubbling and yet I have a few more days before I can start to make my ideas into tangible objects.

When I do get back home (to the cold and snow) I have a few custom orders that I have to make and some packages I have to mail out from people who have purchased this week and are willing to wait until next week for me to mail them to them. As I write this I don't have a picture to post but I'll do that shortly.

This morning is the perfect time to sit back relax and think about where I want to take my business this year and what I want to do with my creativity. It's also a time to realize how lucky I am to be able to take this time and escape the Canadian winter for a short time and enjoy this wonderful wonderful weather and the truly warm and inviting hospitality of the people of Costa Rica. I can say this - we'll be back another time to enjoy all this beauty.

Thank you to the wonderful people of Costa Rica.