Yeah, well...no good excuse

There is no good, plausible excuse I can give for why I haven't blogged in like, forever. But strangely, the world still continued to spin, the weather has continued to move towards that dreaded Oklahoma summertime, and I have gotten a little older, even though I haven't been blogging. But we're back.

Here is what I did today! I hung out with a few members of the Tulsa Craft Mafia - Emily from Girl With A Red Kerchief gave Christine from Weather And Noise and me a sewing lesson!
Emily makes the cutest aprons (if you haven't seen them, check out her shop and take a look!) and she agreed to teach Christine and I how to make a basic apron.
We spent most of today cutting, ironing, sewing, pinning and chatting - it was great fun. We didn't quite finish our aprons but we got close!
I picked out some cute lemon fabric and I decided to use some orange trim. I think this orange might be a little too "day glo" but it's the closest I could get. I think if I used this fabric again I might try a green...

I hope to get more comfortable sewing - my sewing machine intimidates me. There are so many steps in sewing - the planning, the measuring, the cutting...it seems so daunting somehow. But I am determined to conquer sewing.

Meanwhile, we still have lots of great card designs for sale in the shop, along with our new hand-knit cufflets! We sold a bunch of these at the Blue Dome Festival here in Tulsa last month - they are sure to be the Next Big Thing!
And the husband and I have ordered some screen-printing supplies - he is designing some t-shirt designs and we'll launch those as soon as we can!
And Ren is working on some fabulous new card designs.
So - lots of fun things coming along. Thanks for stopping by, see you again soon!

-posted by andrea

New Product Line at Paper Lotus!

Paper Lotus is proud to unveil some new products this week! As some of you may know, I have become addicted to knitting (you can read about it here and here as well as here at PLDG).

Now you can have your very own Paper Lotus knitted item - a hand-knit cufflet!

These cufflets are made from novelty yarns of all kinds (I will post the fiber contents of each one for you sensitive folks). They are rather delicate but oh so neat-o!
I've been looking forward to wearing mine - it has been to cold still for short sleeves most of the time so I haven't gotten much of a chance to show off my cufflets! But starting this week, they'll be in our shop so you can pick up one (or more) of your very own!

I try to use vintage or recycled buttons and they come in lots of great colors - keep checking the shop as we add them for sale this week!


-posted by andrea

All Swapped Out

The Tulsa Craft Mafia - well mostly Christine with Indie Emporium and Weather and Noise - put on the Swap O Rama Rama yesterday here in Tulsa, at the Collective bar/coffee shop on 11th Street.
It was loads of fun! Literally, several loads of fun...
If you're not familiar with how SORR works, you show up with a bag of unwanted clothing as your entry fee - then everyone puts out what they brought, and you look through and pick out things that you want to recycle/upcycle. Singer provided us with 6 sewing machines, there were lots of free patterns, embellishments, and screen printing materials available. We had one sewing expert and several others of us helped keep the clothes tidy and answer general questions (I'm glad no one asked me how to sew anything!)
We also ended up with some donated yarn, which we will save and use at STICKS to knit some hats and scarves for charity.
We had a good turnout - over 100 people, I think! There was also a fashion show for people to show off what they made, and an after-party but I wimped out before those, so I don't know how they went but I'll bet they were fun!
I was a little overwhelmed to try to sew anything, plus I wanted to let other people use the sewing machines. But I did find some t-shirts that I turned into yarn! So I was able to satisfy my knitting fix. Turning t-shirts into yarn is super fun and I can't wait to knit some of it up!
I'll leave you with some pictures of the day's events. It was lots of fun, hope to see you at next year's!




-posted by andrea

Etsy Twitter Team Post

Paper Lotus is a member of the Etsy Twitter Team! I just wanted to take a minute to bring your attention to this week's shop. It's Emmakat!
Her shop, http://emmakat.etsy.com/ has some really interesting jewelry in it - I particularly like the "webbed" necklaces. I think one of those would look really nice...on me! Hmmm I'll have to remember this store for my birthday next month...

WiP Wednesday....on Wednesday...for once.

Do you know what today is? It’s Wednesday. Do you know what that means? It means that I AM ON TIME…for once.

Sadly, this isn’t really a WiP Wednesday. Well…actually, it could be…eventually…it’s just not yet. See, I have a problem with doing things on a schedule. But I try, and I’ve tried to make WiP Wednesday posts on Wednesdays but…um…yeah.

So here is my plan, in an effort to a) draw more, b) have some kind of drawing schedule, c) do something I was supposed to be doing anyway, and d) posting WiP on Wednesdays I am going to try to get back to a sketch a day, which was something I tried to do last year and didn’t succeed with. New twist though, I am going to try sketching digitally because, well, that’s what I do. I tried it with a pen, it didn’t work. Try, try again. And, the best benefit is that although, technically, they not all be works in progress since many of the sketches will just remain sketches, some of them will (hopefully) spawn some new cards or something.

My hope is that I will be able to put on paper, or, more specifically, screen, what is in my head and while that could be a very scary prospect, it’s really not. Because my head is filled with unicorns and rainbows…no seriously…click here and see…



Keep clicking…seriously, the more you click, the better it gets.

And here’s your WiP sketch for today…a snowflake eater in honor of all my east coast friends who are digging out today. Check back next Wednesday to see if I actually stick to my plan…

-posted by ren

WiP Wednesday....

I think I deserve a little credit for this one. I actually started drawing this on Wednesday but I didn’t remember to post it. Well, I remembered at about 11:30 on Wednesday night and I was on my way to bed, so…you know…but I am getting closer.

Yesterday? Well…I forgot yesterday. But now it’s Friday and as we all know, that is a perfectly appropriate day for a Work in Progress Wednesday post.

So here’s part of my crying girl. She’s actually called “he says he loves me for my mind!” and she’s going to part of a series. All I know about it at the moment is there is at least one other girl (What? Two is a series, right?) who is called “he says i remind him of his mother!” I think their titles are pretty self-explanatory.

I am trying to play a little more with transparencies and brushes here. It’s a learning experience.

I’ll show more as they get closer to finished.

-posted by ren

There’s also a vegetarian tiger in process. But he’s hiding…for now.

Dressing the part.

I have a very dear internet friend. A friend I have never met, but I really like her anyway. She’s funny, she’s clever, she’s married to a poet, she once told me she thought of me while buying a bottle of organic gin (yep, if anything is going to remind you of me, it should be organic gin) and she’s a writer.

Now, I’ll be honest, I don’t know what she’s writing at the moment (it’s a seeeeecret), but in a twitter style conversation, I discovered that she had a bit of “the block, “ writer’s block that is and that she had donned her writing costume which she claims involves “a cape, a crown and a fake beard” but that it wasn’t helping.

I didn’t laugh.

I didn’t laugh because I have heard about this. I have heard many writers say that they write better in their…oh, say…their Batman cowl, or their princess crown. I even gave an authoress friend of mine a Wonder Woman style tiara and cuffs to help her get through her latest novel. I have even seen my own husband don a specific baseball cap to write and I hear that my brother puts on his cowboy hat and boots to play Wii boxing…ok, that’s not writing but that’s what I am trying to get at. At some point, we all need a little special boost. And we all have our outfits that do the trick. That one suit that makes you look really efficient, or that one dress that’s cut…well, you know what I mean. And our artist endevours don’t deserve any less thought when it comes to costuming and accessorizing.

For me, it’s warm feet. I work best in my fuzzy boots or toasty slippers. I just can’t be bothered with cold feel when I am trying to create. I am thinking about adding an antique bowler hat though. It was my grandfather’s and I think it’s about time it got a little use…besides, maybe it will hold all the good ideas in.

So, when my writer friend told me she was struggling, I set out to make her some mighty writer’s cuffs and a crown and I put them in a pdf file and sent them off. I don’t know if they will help her get through her block, but I hope they made her laugh.



And as for you, perhaps an artist's crown will get you going.


(It's bigger when you click on it...print it out and see if it helps!)

-posted by ren

WiP Wednesday....

Work in progress Wednesday again, is it?





It’s not?



Oh…well…Work in progress FRIDAY again, is it?

Right.

Well, to be honest, there’s not been much work in progress around here as I had jury duty for three weeks and that just takes any creativity right out of you. And now there is a house guest, albeit, a very kind, quiet houseguest. But you get the picture.

But today, there’s been some movement on the creative front and…well…here she is…



I am not really much of a doodler. I love to draw and I always have so I do, but I rarely sketch. In fact, although I carry a sketchbook with me at all times and I own stacks of them, most of them are filled with words. But once in a while, when I am sitting at my computer toiling away at something now at all art related, I get and idea that I just feel like getting down, right away. This time it was a certain hairstyle that I wanted to record and this is what happened.

I like her, I think she’s cute. In fact, at the moment she’s called cute girl in sweater. I even tried a different skin tone for her, to see what worked better.



So, I guess my point here is, doodling isn’t always just doodling. There isn’t always a pen or a margin of history notes involved. I don’t know if my cute little sweater girl will ever become anything else, but I am starting to think she may have some friends…

-posted by ren

New Cards For Sale!

Now you can get birthday cards in our shop!

You can pick any 4 birthday cards from these really great designs!



And, we now have a listing so you can pick any 4 cards in the shop, your choice! Well almost any cards. This deal excludes hand-made cards, gift tags, and any other merchandise. It only applies to printed cards. But still! Now you can choose!

Upcoming Publicity for PLDG!

The Paper Lotus Design Group West Coast Satellite Office is temporarily closed, due to - jury duty! Hope you are able to rejoin society soon, Ren!
So until that time I'll do my best to keep you updated from this end.
Personally I have a lot going on and have been super busy. And Paper Lotus has been busy too!

Last night the Tulsa Craft Mafia was interviewed by the Tulsa World newspaper - they are going to do a story on hand-made Valentine gift ideas. So we all made something, and brought it to the interview along with written instructions on how to make our item. They interviewed us for a little while, took pictures of us and our crafts. Now, I'm one of the newest members of the TCM - the veteran members might be used to being in the limelight but it's still pretty novel for me! So I'm excited to see how the article turns out. And rest assured as soon as I find it's up, I'll let you know!

So, what did I make, you ask? It was tough to decide. I wanted to do something that looked neat, but that might be easy enough for anyone to try to make. So I decided on a shrink plastic Valentine Charm. You could turn this into a necklace, a pin, a key chain - whatever you wanted to make.
I am happy with how it turned out - happier about the new design than the charm itself (I think I already have a new Valentine's card for next year!) and it was fun to make.
I'll be posting the complete instructions on the TCM web site soon but until then I'll leave you with a few pictures...


-posted by andrea

Satellite Office Update

This is a quick update from one of the Paper Lotus Satellite Offices on the West Coast!

My Dad has started a candle-making company, called The Green Candle Company. He uses recycled materials when available and makes sure to use only natural, high-quality ingredients in all his candles. He's working on beeswax and soy candles. He's working on several different types of candles, including tea lights, votives, and tapers.
My Dad is a very methodical person - he tests his candles, tweaks something, then tests again. And he keeps doing this till he's satisfied.
He also made his own molds for his candles. The taper molds were turned on a lathe! So these candles are FROM SCRATCH.
Here is a picture of a "test burn" - or, as he explained, "4 simultaneous test burns." Now that's dedication!
Green Candle Company products will hopefully be up for sale soon - look for them at farmer's markets in Southern California, Etsy, and of course, Paper Lotus will be helping with promotion as well!

-posted by andrea

We are being social

Paper Lotus is a member of a few new groups!

1. Etsy Twitter Street Team
You can find a lot of Etsy sellers on Twitter. Including me! We've joined this group because Twitter is a great way to meet people, it's a great way to see what people all over the place are up to!
Each week the Street Team features a different shop. This week the featured shop is Paw and Claw Designs - stop by to check it out, they have some interesting jewelry!
Shop is here
Etsy Twitter Street Team Blog here


2. Disciples of Etsy - Oklahoma Street Team
Gotta represent my state! We're a new member here as well so I'm not sure what OK Etsy has in store for this year. Hope to update you with more soon!

3. Tulsa Craft Mafia
A group of great gals here in Tulsa! We are going to be doing some craft shows together and some other events such as a Swap o Rama Rama. I'm looking forward to doing all kinds of fun things with them this coming year.
Web site here

And while I'm pointing you in the direction of all these other sites, don't forget to stop by our Etsy Shop - www.paperlotus.etsy.com!
We have lots of neat-o valentines cards (Ren has been super busy!)

-posted by andrea

We Love Robots

Robots are cool.
Except when they are the evil kind and they take over the world. Like, Cylons for instance. The jury is still out on those.

But this robot - this is the good kind of robot. The kind that shows up at your house for a date with some balloons for you.
This card'll be up for sale soon in our shop!

-posted by andrea

WiP Wednesday....um...Thursday

Oh dear, oh dear. After a nice buzzy little holiday season it looks as if sales have dropped off. Of course, you could just be running behind with your Valentine’s Day shopping. Or you could be wondering what indeed we have been up to over at chez PaperLotus. Well…we’ve been working. Andrea has an adorable new elephant valentine and the bees are still around, as well as the signs cards. And there’s more in store, I promise. But until it’s on the floor, Andrea suggested a “work in progress Wednesday” and…oh…it’s Thursday, isn’t it? Ah well, you know me, always a little behind schedule. Nonetheless, here is a glimpse of my latest, some selected shots of new set of four silhouette designs.

Silhouettes seem to have become trendy lately, and I guess I am always willing to try something new. I actually have been planning a much more disturbing set of four but decided to go the nice way first. Personally, I think silhouettes are inherently unnerving but that may just some from some creepy kid’s books I used to own. But, as I said, I took the more cheerful route for the first time out. What do you think? I think these would make cute Valentine’s or even a nice birthday card or just a sweet “hey there!” kind of card.

Keep an eye out, see if I can smooth the edges and maybe they’ll show up in the store soon…
-posted by ren

New Cards Comin Atcha

We've got some new cards coming to the store in the next week!

Starting with these guys:

We'll have some more Valentine's designs soon so that you can send some out to all your favorite peeps.

And everyone needs a monster card sometimes you know! I accidentally altered this picture but I kind of like it so here it is.

You can pick up these (and so much more!) here!

-posted by andrea

SALE!!!

In keeping with after-Christmas bargain hunting, Paper Lotus is putting all our holiday cards on sale!
All 10-packs of holiday cards are now $5 off. Yes that's right, $5 off! Hurry in while supplies last - once the cards have sold, they will not be relisted, so stop by to pick up your favorite designs today!



-offer void where prohibited, may not be combined with other sales offers, all sales final, I'm just writing this to see if anyone will read it.

Survey, need your help!

If you could hand a coupon to your spouse/partner/significant other, what would it say? Would it be one free taking out of the trash? Their turn to pick up the take out? Do the ironing?
Sometimes I wish I had a coupon I could hand over to automatically win an argument. Or have 5 minutes of silence, or...
What coupon would YOU like to hand over? Leave your dream coupon ideas in the comments - thanks!!!


-posted by andrea

Arrrrgh!

Pirates rock! And snowmen rock too! So put them together and you have a really great Holiday Card.
I know others besides me feel this way about Ren's Pirate Snowman cards - we've sold quite a few of them!
One Paper Lotus customer has bought some from us 2 years in a row. Thanks to Camelama for being a repeat customer! Camalama says she likes our Pirate Snowman cards because of an online game she plays involving pirates, she likes to send these cards to her friends who also play the game.
And this year, she has even made some Pirate Snowman christmas tree ornaments! You definitely need to check them out, I think they are a nice compliment to a 10-pack of Pirate Snowman cards!

Happy Holidays to you!

-posted by andrea

Stamp of Approval for Etsy bath and body.

Etsy is a great place to shop. You can find amazing stuff there. Stuff like oh, I don’t know…hedgie note cards, hamsters in balls…pretty much anything you like. But it can be overwhelming too. I mean there’s just…so…much. So I thought that this would be the perfect time to share with you a few shops I have dealt with and really, really love. Really.

I am forever searching for the “ultimate” of something. The best moisturizer, the best shampoo, the best perfume. Well, here come etsy to the rescue!

I have fine, limp, dry hair. Hair that has been a pain in my…head…my entire life. So many shampoos just don’t work on it, it gets weighed down. But I happened across Salty Dawg crème shampoo at GudonyaToo and I am hooked. I’ve been through two bottles so far and I still really like it. I have tried it in Tahitian Vanilla and Strawberry Fields and I am thinking I need to suggest that they make a chocolate scent. Doesn’t that sound good? Used in conjunction with their conditioner, my hair is behaving better than ever before.

Dry skin? Got that too. But Lollibomb has the cure. The whipped body frosting has been a godsend for me. There are lots of body butters out there. Some don’t work, some are just too expensive to justify and some smell bad. Lollibomb’s butters smell great, took care of that dry patch that wouldn’t go away and are quite affordable. I particularly like the honey and almond scent and the one called “new age girl” but it’s wintertime so my next order will probably be for hot cocoa and marshmallows.

Still stinky? Well have I got a fun scent for you! I read an article a while back about scents that attract men. Seems that the most attractive scent is a combo of lavender and pumpkin pie and the second most attractive is a mix of licorice and donuts. Now, I don’t know about you, but I am unlikely to rub myself with donuts or pie. Well…not on purpose…but there is a much easier answer to making men drool…urbbody makes perfumes with these scent mixes and they are…wonderful. Seriously. I originally bought them on a whim, just thinking it was a funny idea and now they are two of my favorite fragrances. They are very affordable stocking stuffers and you get a very generous .75 ounces. And the best part? The scent actually lasts all day.

So you know, if you are buying handmade, there’s a few sellers that I really like. All have given me good service and I have been very pleased with their products. Your mileage may, of course, vary, but they get my stamp of approval.

And now that you are feeling a bit pretty, why don't you  head over to PaperLotus and see some of my pretties...pin-up girls for geeks!


Hey, nerds are beautiful too...and they get their own stamp of approval!

Books make great gifts!

In my book, you can’t go wrong with books as presents. It may be true that people don’t read as much as they used to, but everyone needs reference sometimes. And kids get a great start in life when they have books. They are just good all around gifts, holidays, birthdays, everyday.

My favorite books for the littlest of kids are of two different varieties. I like to give both “chewy books” and “heirloom books.” Chewy books are those chubby, wipe clean volumes that mom doesn’t have to worry about getting damaged. They are made to take the abuse of a teething toddler. One of my all time favorite authors of such books is Sandra Boynton. Who could resist titles like “Moo Baa La La La” or “But not the Hippopotamus”? And I think I’ve now given every kid I know “Dinosaur’s Binket.”

My friends who are currently parenting tots tell me that the silly rhyming stories in these short cheerful books are perfect for even the youngest of children as the goofy sounds and situations seem to require the adult readers to make some pretty silly sounds and the babies just love that. And make no mistake, babies DO NEED to be read to, they can’t do it on their own and it’s been proven that it’s very good for them.

Heirloom books are, to me, the classics that the giver inscribes to the recipient and hopefully, the recipient will treasure them forever. I have books given to me as a child by my parents, my grandparents and my aunts and uncles and I keep them to this day. Among my favorites to give are anything from the Winnie the Pooh series, A Child’s Garden of Verses, Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan. The books may seem a little dated to adults but the adventures contained within will never go out of style with kids.

And as for everyone else? Well, the new cook can always use a classic cookbook. I don’t follow recipes much myself but I do refer to The Joy of Cooking for it’s many handy directions on times and techniques. Crossword enthusiasts and students can always use a good dictionary. Artists might enjoy a biography of their favorite artist and there are a million how-to books for every crafter. And don't forget, books can last a lifetime, so if you are on a budget or even if you want a super-special gift, like a first edition, check out your local used booksellers, thrift stores and library sales.

Buying handmade? There are a million different kinds of zines out there, one is sure to work for someone on your list. Search “zines” on etsy and you’ll find pamphlets and books galore. You could also google “distros” and find many different kinds of zine distributors. I’ve personally shopped with Microcosm publishing and found tons of fun stuff.

But please be aware, books are often the slow burn kind of gift. Kids may groan or seem unimpressed, but once you show them the great world inside those pages, I hope they find that books really do make the greatest presents.

Any books you might add to a list of gifts? Maybe the library fairy can help!



Books as gifts, well, of course that gets my stamp of approval. (You know I am just loving saying that, right? And having this little stamp icon. It makes me feel like a cheerful Andy Rooney or something.)