Down East Magazine's Maine-Made Gift Guide

Exciting news from Lofted Designs headquarters!!! Our pet tags are being featured as part of Down East Magazine's 2013 Maine-Made Holiday Gift Guide!

(I created this sweet little badge to commemorate the occasion!)

Down East is known as the magazine of Maine, evoking and illuminating the spirit and culture of my great state and available at newsstands and stores nationwide.

The publication approached me in the early fall about the possibility of featuring Lofted Designs pet tags and I mailed off five ID tags to their editorial team for review.

Thanks to the USPS for helping me make the submission deadline!

Ultimately, they selected three of the pet tags ("squirrel chaser," "i ❤ maine," and "stinky breath") to feature on their Furry Friend gift page.

There's a lot going on in this collage of creativity, but Lofted Designs is #1 in the upper left corner!

Here's a snapshot with our tags highlighted to help you find them.

And a close-up!

If you can't quite read the tags in print, luckily they were kind enough to also feature them online with a link to my Etsy shop! Here's a link to all 133 of their Maine-made gift selections online.

Down East has been in print for nearly 60 years! I am so honored and thrilled to be part of this time-honored publication with a readership of more than 400,000 people. Be sure to pick up a copy, available on newsstands this week!

Custom Handmade Bridesmaid Gifts

I absolutely LOVE making custom jewelry – especially when weddings are involved. Whether I am designing wedding bands or handcrafted earrings, it is a tremendous honor to be thought of for such a monumental occasion. So when my friend Ali was planning her wedding day and asked me if I'd make handmade gifts for her two lovely bridesmaids, I jumped at the chance!

Works in progress – stamping, hammering and forming

The bride already had an idea in mind, which is always helpful, and knew she wanted to give her BFFs sterling silver bracelets. We worked together to refine the design – an elegant hammered cuff, a little bit wide, but not too chunky. The bride came up with a personalized message to be stamped on the inside of each bracelet.

A secret message inside – with love from the bride

The finished product

Two custom bracelets for the big day!

The bridesmaids LOVED their gifts and even wore them during the wedding. I couldn't be more flattered to have been chosen to be part of this beautiful occasion.

If you have a special event coming up, why not give your loved ones personalized handmade jewelry as a gift? Contact me to discuss your ideas anytime!

Happy Etsy-versary To Lofted Designs

I don't know how this happened, but in the blink of an eye five years has passed. That's right. Lofted Designs has been on Etsy for five years! This may seem trivial to most of you, but to me it's absolutely amazing.

I opened the shop on a whim, never dreaming it would turn into anything lasting, and thanks to all of you—my loyal supporters, customers, readers and fans—I'm still making new things, selling my original creations and finding time to enjoy this creative outlet and expensive little hobby of mine.

Etsy has been good to me. It has allowed me to reach customers worldwide who would have never found me otherwise. I've sold my jewelry and pet tags (including lots of custom orders) to people all over the United States, Canada, Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Norway, Italy, Russia, Taiwan, Singapore, Finland, South Africa, Brazil, and many others. And it's still a rush to receive an international order, even after five years.

Other recent and exciting milestones:

• Hit my 500th sale on Etsy this year, and am now closing in on 600!
• Surpassed 400 followers on Facebook!
• Amassed over 500 followers on Twitter!
• Lofted Designs joined Instagram!
• Soon to be featured in a well-known magazine (more on that soon)!

Over the past five years, I've been constantly trying to improve my shop. Slowly, but surely, I've been optimizing my listings and trying to improve my photography. In 2013, I enhanced my About page to include behind-the-scenes photos and some insights about my process. I've also been an active participant in several Etsy teams, especially the supportive and innovative group Etsy MaineTeam — home to the some of the most creative folks you can imagine.

One area for improvement, and something to work on in year six: listing new items. Right now, I have nearly 50 new items in stock that are not listed on Etsy: rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets and more. During the coming year, I'll try to be better about keeping my shop reflective of my current creative direction.

What suggestions do you have for me? I'm all ears. And thanks again for your support over the past five years!

You're Invited This Sunday – Local Shopping at its Best

Greetings, early holiday shoppers! If you are ready to get a jump start on your gifting, I've got the perfect event for you. This Sunday, I am honored to be participating in an Open House event in York, Maine. Local artist Laurie Wallace is once again opening her home for this wonderful event and I hope to see YOU there!

Sunday, November 3rd

1:00 - 4:30 pm

31 Avon Avenue (off Long Sands Rd.)

York, Maine

(click for directions)

Lofted Designs will be there with gifts for everyone on your list: a new assortment of handmade necklaces, earrings, tie bars, sterling silver rings in many sizes, pet tags and handcrafted collars. Enjoy complimentary refreshments and wine! 

---

OTHER PARTICIPATING ARTISTS

Laurie Wallace -- Hand-Spun Knits by Laurie
Gorgeous and soft hobo gloves, alpaca cowl neck scarves, alpaca hats and more! So much care goes into these lovely pieces.

Amy Clark -- Ocean Fire Pottery

One of my favorite local artists, Amy makes beautiful handcrafted wheelthrown stoneware. Preview items on her website or Facebook page. 

Erin Donovan -- Twig Naturals
Handmade candles, coasters and cards — they're all gorgeous and make wonderful gifts!

Janice & Pam -- Gingerloo Cookies 

All-natural cookies baked in small batches locally. Visit their website or Facebook page to learn more (and to drool over gorgeous cookie photos).

***Please note:

This is my only planned show for the holiday season (so far). More may be added, but this is the only one that's been confirmed. Don't miss your chance to shop Lofted Designs in person for the holidays!

How To Make a Halloween Costume Without Leaving The House

If you know me or have been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I have dreams of becoming a flight attendant someday. While those plans simmer on the back burner, I can at least pretend to have my dream job because it's Halloween. And everybody knows you can be whatever the f*#% you want to be on Halloween.

But the problem is I'm lazy and I'm indecisive (two qualities that would probably make me a poor flight attendant). I've been hatching costume plans for a month, but haven't loved any of them enough to actually get my act together. I waited until the last minute, and now I'm scrambling to figure out what to be for a neighborhood Halloween party.

Luckily, I possess two qualities that WOULD make me a fantastic flight attendant – I am quick on my feet and I am resourceful. I decide to create a costume out of nothing the day of the party and challenge myself to not spend a dime or leave the house. 

By scrounging around my closet, I pull together a somewhat-convincing retro flight attendant costume. I grab a navy blue pencil skirt and white button down shirt. My small collection of silk scarves includes a red, white and blue number that will help pull the whole look together. I even find my childhood button collection (I collected just about everything when I was a kid, and yes, I saved it all) which contains three sets of airline wing pins. Score!

But I'm missing one key component of any realistically retro flight attendant getup. A pillbox hat. After some Google searching, I learn that a pillbox hat is fairly simple to make. In one tutorial you can even start with a cereal box, but I'm not feeling quite that ambitious. Also, I don't want to sew. I look around the house until I find a hat-shaped sugar container that's almost empty. Thanks, Domino®! I transfer the remaining crystals to a bag and proceed to cut the plastic container in half using a combination of X-ACTO® knife and scissors. Be careful if you do this! I also used a hair dryer to soften the plastic a bit and get those weird "handle" curves out of the structure.

I find one of my husband's old shirts in our Goodwill donation pile and take scissors to that, cutting a strip that will wrap around the outside of the sugar container form.

I locate an old mini glue gun and a huge bag of glue sticks I bought years ago ("These are so cheap! I'm sure I'll use them for something someday!"). Well, that day has come. I fire up the glue gun and secure the shirt fabric to the sugar container form. I glue the bottom edges under the form, and the top edges down to the top. 

Once that's done, I grab a cereal box and cut a round top from the thin cardboard. I glue more shirt fabric to the top of the cereal box circle, tack the edges underneath with more glue and affix that to the top of the hat. It's all coming together now. But it's so plain. Clearly something is missing. 

I raid more drawers and come up with a navy handkerchief that I don't mind sacrificing. Cutting a strip of navy fabric and gluing a nice dark edge around the bottom of the pillbox helps finish the look and makes the hat match my skirt better. Done!

My husband was even happy to play along as my disheveled, weirdo traveler — a creepy passenger on my flight. He wore a wig and his own clothes, and tucked a passport in his pocket to complete the theme.

Freeport Fall Festival - This Weekend, September 28-29

This coming weekend, Saturday (10am-4pm) and Sunday (11am-4pm), head on up to Freeport, Maine for some glorious weather, fantastic shopping, and fabulous handmade goods at the 15th Annual Freeport Fall Festival!

More than 60 local artists will be exhibiting and selling their work, including photographers, painters, mixed media artists, jewelers, book artists, woodworkers, potters and other super crafty people. Lofted Designs will have a booth (#72 on the map) along the edge of L.L.Bean's Discovery Park – directly between the giant Bean Boot and the main stage. Catch live music throughout the weekend, plus they've added a new Maine food lineup this year! The two-day event is free, parking is easy and the forecast looks PERFECT.

Seriously, people, it does not get any better than this:

If the Fall Festival isn't incentive enough to visit Freeport, there are also hundreds of great stores, outlets, and boutiques located within a couple of blocks. C'mon guys, even I can't resist a North Face sample sale. And if shopping all weekend sounds like a total bummer and you'd rather just be outside, come check out the festival and then participate in Great Maine Outdoor Weekend or bring a lawn chair and take in some short adventure films at the Maine Outdoor Film Fest right on the L.L.Bean Campus at 7pm on Saturday. 

For detailed event information, check out the Freeport Fall Festival online brochure, visit their website or their Facebook event page.

Nearly Everyone I Know is Pregnant (a.k.a. I'm Shopping for New Mom Gifts)

It's true. It seems as though 80% of the women I know are pregnant right now. Which means I'm surrounded by happy, glowing friends and have several festive baby showers to attend. This means gifts. Lots and lots of baby shower gifts, newborn baby gifts and gifts for new moms and dads.

I always assume newborns will be gifted with tons of clothes they will outgrow in their first month of life, so I usually don't succumb to purchasing those adorable miniature outfits. Except for the occasional irresistible onesies and t-shirts for very special babies. Like these. And sometimes these.

Gift registries are great, but sometimes you want to give something a little more personal. That's why I think these necklaces are the best possible gift a new mom could receive.

I'll admit it, I'm biased. They are, of course, my own creation. But this idea for birthstone eternity necklaces was born (pun intended) from necessity. I was looking for a personal gift for a new mother and had a lot of trouble finding something special, yet affordable.

Not only are they custom and reasonably priced, they are handmade, sterling silver, and expandable for when baby #2, #3 and possibly even baby #4 arrive. Just order new circle pendants and you're good to go!

Two (and sometimes even three) names can even be combined onto one circle if they aren't too long – this is a popular option for twins and triplets.

Custom Wedding Band for the Groom

My dear friend Meredith was married over the weekend, and I was extremely flattered when she asked me to create a Lofted Designs original for her groom's wedding band.

Her engagement ring contains a hidden heart in the setting just below the diamond, and she requested that a hidden heart be incorporated into his ring as well.

Bride's ring with secret heart in setting

I started by creating a 6mm wide band using 19 gauge sterling silver sheet metal. The bride came up with a simple inscription using their initials that incorporated the secret heart. The groom isn't particularly flashy and wanted a ring that wouldn't be too shiny, so I completed the band with a matte, brushed finish.

The ring fit perfectly on the first try (amazing!) and they were wed on September 7th, 2013 on Martha's Vineyard. Wishing Meredith and Winter Anderson a lifetime of happiness!

Photo courtesy of Kristen Shull (friend of the bride)

Looking for a custom wedding band? I love working with couples to create truly unique wedding jewelry. Contact me to learn more.