First Annual Open House

Hi friends,
I'm trying something utterly new and different this year – a holiday open house! You see, I have bunches of beautiful handmade jewelry left over from the festival and fair circuit. Why should I keep it all for myself when it could be brightening someone's holiday or stuffing someone's stocking?

Saturday, December 17, 2011
Noon - 5:00 pm
The address can be found here.

Find great last-minute gifts and stocking stuffers at the first annual Lofted Designs Open House!
Visitors can enter a drawing to win a free pair of sterling silver earrings. And I have a feeling not that many people will show up, so your chances of winning would be pretty amazing!

Bring a friend or two. There’s no pressure to buy like those other jewelry parties...just come browse and enjoy light refreshments (cookies and cider, anyone?) and good holiday cheer.

Preview a sampling of my work at www.LoftedDesigns.com. Much more will be available in person.
 
RSVP for the event on Facebook.

Cash, checks and credit cards are all welcome.
Hope to see you!

2011 Close Buy Catalog

Lofted Designs was honored to participate in the 2011 Close Buy Catalog. What a cool concept! 

In case you're not familiar with Close Buy, this is a school fundraising initiative started in Maine by Masey Kaplan who was fed up with feeling compelled to order from boring wrapping paper catalogs every year to support her child's school. She came up with a much better way to fundraise while supporting local businesses and the Close Buy Catalog was born.

Two of my items were included in the catalog:

• The silver squiggle necklace found here

• The silver teardrop earrings found here

I was really pleased with the number of orders I received – plenty to make it worth my while and keep me busy, but not enough to cause a nervous breakdown. This was my first large wholesale order, and I really enjoyed the whole process, from coming up with designs and pricing all the way through to packaging. 

Here is Sandy (super beagle!) helping me package earrings.

And here are my shipments, ready to go to 23 schools!

My jewelry was in amazing company, side by side with products from Angela Adams, Ferdinand, annie|catherine, Sea Bags, Morris & Essex, Casco Bay Soap Co., Haven's Candies and tons more. So, basically, I somehow ended up in the mix with all the coolest companies in Maine. Not sure how that happened, but I'm sure glad it did!!

If you are affiliated with education in Maine, please consider bringing the Close Buy Catalog into your school in 2012. It's good clean fundraising. No more wrapping paper catalogs! Keep it local. Learn more here.

Craft Fix - Kittery, Maine - This Sunday!

Buoy Gallery — 2 Government St., Kittery, Maine

Sunday, November 27th, 2011

11 AM - 6 PM

Craft Fix is back for another year! So happy to be participating in this creative event. 

After you support Buy Nothing Day on Friday and Small Business Saturday, come over to Buoy in Kittery for CRAFT FIX, where you'll find locally handcrafted gifts for everyone on your list! Some of the seacoast's most talented artists and craftspeople will be there, so skip the outlets and malls and head downtown.

Sneak Peek at some Lofted Designs goodies for Sunday!

All types of handmade crafts will be represented including handcrafted jewelry, tote bags and purses, greeting cards, sculptures, pottery, photography and more. RSVP here or just show up! I'd love to see your face supporting handmade businesses this season!

***Note: If we are very, very lucky, the brand new Black Birch restaurant may be open in time for this event. It is right next door and looks very promising. Like them on Facebook to learn when they open.

Artsy Affair - This Thursday, Nov. 10th, 5-9pm

Well, the outdoor shows are over for the season and the tent has been stashed away until next summer. This Thursday marks the official start of my holiday craft fair season! I am excited to be trying out a new fair in Maine — Artsy Affair.

Thursday, November 10

5:00 - 9:00 pm

The Inn at Brunswick Station

Brunswick, Maine

visit this page for directions

Artsy Affair is the self-proclaimed "indie style craft and artisan fair" featuring craftspeople from Maine's mid-coast region and a few of us from beyond (like me from York). They are doing a great job of highlighting participating artists on their blog each day leading up to the event, so be sure to check it out for a sneak peek.  Several of my products were featured on the "7th day of Artsy" post!


Artsy Affair is juried (i.e. not cluttered with junk...only the best handmade goods around) and offers a unique holiday shopping experience for the community where shoppers can meet an amazing group of artisans and enjoy the start of the holiday season with delicious food, live music and local art.


Get a jump start on holiday shopping and keep it local.
Hope to see you there!


P.S. Like their Facebook page for updates leading up to the event.

Big Fall Weekend - Happy October!

This weekend marks the beginning of one of my favorite months of the year! October is awesome for so many reasons: warm, sunny days and crisp, cool nights, beautiful fall foliage at its peak in New England, my favorite holiday—Halloween, apple pies, golden sunlight, and all-things-pumpkin just to name a few.

I have a lot of exciting things going on this weekend to mark the start of this glorious month. I hope to see many of your smiling faces!

Apple Harvest Day – Downtown, Dover, NH

Saturday, October 1st

9am - 4pm

Dover's annual Apple Harvest Day event includes 300 crafters and artists, 3 stages worth of all-day entertainment, carnival games, rides, a petting zoo, a green marketplace, and my favorite contradiction of the day: a Healthy Living Expo and delicious-sounding apple pie baking contest. I will be selling handmade jewelry and pet tags in front of one of my favorite establishments in all the land: the Silver Moon Creperie on Third Street (next to the old Strand Theater location). Hopefully they will be sending crepes outside to me all day long at regular intervals (hint, hint Theresa and Chris).

Portsmouth Open Market – Strawbery Banke, Portsmouth, NH

Sunday, October 2nd

10am - 4pm

This coming Sunday marks my final appearance of the year at the Portsmouth Open Market. And what a lovely market it is, with a wide variety of different artisans, designers, cooks, bakers and farmers each Sunday on the historic grounds of Puddle Dock at the Strawbery Banke Museum. 

I should also mention that I have LOTS of new jewelry for this weekend that is not available online yet. Be the first to get a sneak peek!

Picnic Arts + Music Fest is Tomorrow

In case you’ve been living under a rock, I’m here to tell you the 4^th Annual Picnic Music + Arts Summer Festival is tomorrow! This is my third year participating and I am excited beyond belief. My booth is across from the Info booth. Mention that you saw my blog post or that you follow me on Facebook or Twitter for a 10% discount off your Lofted Designs purchase! 

Original screenprinted posters by Kris Johnsen will be for sale at Picnic!

Here are the basics:

Tomorrow (Saturday, August 27^th)

Rain or shine

Lincoln Park (corner of Congress Street & Franklin Arterial)
11am – 6pm

There will be live music! (view schedule)

The forecast is looking great for daytime outdoor activities, but I encourage you to come early! Before the good stuff is sold and before the weather possibly turns in the afternoon. 

This event it juried and pretty darn selective, so you are sure to see the best of the best here. This isn’t your grandma’s craft fair. A list of vendors can be found here. 

Here are some links for additional info:

Facebook page 

Twitter feed

Also, don’t forget about the HillyTown Official Afterparty at Geno’s! Facebook event page 

Come on out and have some fun before Hurricane Irene puts you on house arrest. Hope to see you there!

Modern Millie - Newburyport, MA

There's something you need to know about me:  I do not consider myself to be a fashionista. I'll admit it. I'm usually a little behind when it comes to adopting new trends in fashion. A follower rather than a leader. So you can imagine my surprise when I walked past the Newburyport Modern Millie consignment shop a few weeks ago and saw MY DRESSES (yes, more than one) in the store window.

There they were. Two of my dresses, dropped off just days before, on display for the world to see! And presumably to entice the world to enter this fabulous secondhand clothing store and make a purchase. Now, to better understand my surprise, you should know that Modern Millie has the most adorable, alluring, fashionable store windows in town. Perhaps on the entire seacoast. They took my dresses, now tired and drab from spending years in the deep dark recesses of my closet, and accessorized them in ways I never would have thought of! They made them cute again.

And two days later, they were both gone. Either moved to the store's interior to make way for newer items, or perhaps sold for big bucks that will translate into great new fall wardrobe for me! Either way, I had a glimpse of glory and the fleeting thought that maybe I am more chic than I know. Just maybe.

Visit my favorite store in Newburyport at 41 Pleasant Street if you're ever in town! They've got a fun blog too.

More Than Just Jewelry

It's true. There is much more to me than my little jewelry business. I'm a wife and a sister. I'm mother to a sweet little fur baby (a beagle to be specific). I'm a full-time account/traffic/production manager at a busy marketing agency. I'm a surfer and a reader. A music lover and a mountain biker. A beer drinker and an ice cream connoisseur. The point is, I'm more than just a jeweler.

Often, I have ideas or am inspired by things that don't quite fit the mold of a jewelry blog. But then again, who wants to read JUST about a little jewelry business in Maine? Boring. So tonight, I was thinking that maybe I should just write what I want to write about and not worry so much about fitting every post into a theme.

I'm going to try it out and see how it goes. Feedback is always welcome!
As always, thanks for reading,
Lori

Portsmouth Open Market

 

This Sunday - July 3rd (10am - 4pm)
Portsmouth Open Market at Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, is a juried outdoor independent art and Farmers Market. This town has needed a great ongoing event like this for so long! Approximately 70 local and regional artists and farmers set up shop nearly every Sunday all summer long.

There are different vendors weekly so you'll never see the same market twice! You'll find lots of great items including house wares, paper goods, handbags, jewelry, ceramics, clothing, accessories, paintings/drawings and many other one-of-a-kind curiosities.

I'll be there this Sunday, July 3rd. Visit the Lofted Designs booth to say hello! If you can't make it this Sunday, I'll also be there on August 7th and October 2nd.

You can also keep up with the Open Market on Facebook and Twitter.

2011 First Quarter Donation - Helping Japan

Like most people, I am heartbroken by the recent natural disasters in Japan. I knew immediately when the earthquake hit that Lofted Designs' first quarter donation for 2011 would go to helping those who have been devastated by these events. But where to donate? With so many organizations collecting money, it's hard to know which ones will do the most with what they have.

When I heard about Real Medicine's Japan relief fundraising, and matching donations being made by the Ace Hotel, Rudy's Barbershop, Bimbo's Cantina and the Cha Cha Lounge, I knew it was the right organization for me. These companies are partnering to match donations dollar for dollar up to $18,000. I can't give much, but now I have effectively doubled what I can afford to give.

The funds are focused on Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief, a Japanese non-profit organization based in Tokyo. JEN was founded in 1994 in response to the humanitarian crisis in Bosnia, and has since been conducting relief around the world for victims of war, internal conflicts and natural disasters. JEN is focusing on providing food and other needed supplies to those in Tokyo and in the earthquake/tsunami-affected northern zones.

To donate, click here and be sure to specify that your donation is for Japan Relief Efforts to get matching funds from the generous sponsors.

The Warm Fuzzies of Success

The verdict is in. 2010 was a great year for Lofted Designs thanks to all of you!

I finally did my 2010 paperwork (yes, I am a procrastinator when it comes to boring stuff like taxes). You know how sometimes, when you're in the middle of something, you can't get a feel for the big picture? It's just too close, too busy, all happening too fast. So sitting down this weekend and getting organized was a HUGE eye-opener for me. As I rooted through my receipts and files and put everything together I discovered the following incredible things:

• I participated in 12 amazing craft fairs in 2010 (who knew?!)
• I had wonderful success on Etsy -- sales nearly doubled from 2009!
• I was able to donate to many terrific organizations

If you aren't familiar with my philosophy on giving back, please take a moment to read this page.

I typically donate to one non-profit organization each quarter based on sales. Well, with 2010's increase in sales came an increase in donations. I would love to give a shout-out to all of the wonderful organizations (and the people behind them) who benefited from this success. May they continue to do great things in the world!

Click on the logos if you'd like to learn more about any of these organizations. Thanks for helping me give back!