Debut of The Traveling Handmade Bazaar Trunk Shows

Announcing the debut of The Traveling Handmade Bazaar trunk show to be held on Monday, May 21, 2012 at The Bean Coffee & Wine Cafe in Andover, MN from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Six artists will be selling handcrafted items, and there will be a wine and appetizer special offered during the show.

Please stop by and say hello and check out the great items made by some very talented Minnesotans (including me!). I’m excited for our first show and hope it’s just one of many to come.

If you’re asking “what is a trunk show?” you are not alone. Several people have asked me that question. A trunk show is a smaller, more intimate craft show featuring a handful of artists selling their creations. Rather than a larger craft show which gets hectic and your attention gets divided in too many directions (ever wanted to go back for something but couldn’t for the life of you remember where you saw that item?), a trunk show offers the opportunity to take a little more time to see everything each artist has for sale. You also have the chance to talk to the person who made the items. It’s a great time to inquire about custom orders (feel free to ask me about bridal party jewelry or creating jewelry in your favorite colors or styles!).

The Bean is located at 15190 Bluebird Street NW, Suite 100, Andover, MN. Click here for a map. Watch for this sign below.

Please consider following our group on Facebook too – then you’ll be kept up-to-date with news of our upcoming shows and events. We’d love to hear your feedback and comments.

For further information, please visit the HandmadeMN blog – there’s a great list of the product categories available at this show and other information about the event.

Hope to see you on Monday!

Denise

Craftstravaganza at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds – May 12, 2012

While I’ve been slacking a bit on my blog posts, I’ve been spending some awesome quality time with my sister and her husband while they were in town. It’s been nice to be with my family and change things up a bit, but now it’s time to get back to business. I’m working on several projects as well as preparing for my first trunk show on May 21 in Andover. More about that soon.

Tomorrow the St. Paul Craftsravaganza Rogue Art and Craft Sale is being held at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Vendors will be housed in two buildings at the fairgrounds – the Fine Arts Building and the Progress Center. Admission is free and over 140 artists are participating – many, many talented Minnesotans in so many varying areas of expertise.

In addition, there is a schedule for free workshops throughout the day. Maybe there’s a craft that you’re interested in learning but haven’t quite taken the time to master.

Workshop Area #1:

ALL DAY – MN Center for Book Arts mini tunnel books & button making

Workshop Area #2:

• 10:00-11:00 – Spinning Demonstration by MN Weaver’s Guild
• 11:00-11:30 – “How To Sell To A Shop” by i like you
• 11:30-12:30 – Make Food Jewelry with Tiny Hands
• 1:00-2:00 – Weaving Demonstration by MN Weaver’s Guild
• 2:30-3:30 – T-Shirt Necklaces with Sherri Olson
• 3:30-4:30 – Make Food Jewelry with Tiny Hands

Click here to check out the website for more details. If you attend the show or have gone in the past, I’d love to hear what you think! I haven’t been to it before, but hope to stop by tomorrow.

Happy shopping – I bet you can find some great last minute Mother’s Day gifts, or spend some money while your “other half” is at the fishing opener!

Homemade Granola

When I first started my blog, it was my intention to write about beading, jewelry and other crafts, as well as cooking, recipes and household tips. I’m finally getting around to trying to figure out how to make these work together, so I may have to make some layout changes in the future, but here’s my first food related post!

We have some challenges in our house related to dietary requirements, so I’ve had to adapt my ways of cooking and change my recipes accordingly. With all of the food related issues in today’s day and age, I figure it’s best to share what I’ve learned as it may help someone else. More about our particular needs later…

Today I’m making granola. I ran out last week and it’s been on my priority list, but today it rose to the top in a quick hurry. For lunch I heated up a salmon burger on the stove and fried it too hot, resulting in a smoky and fishy smell in the house. Because of the spring pollen, I limit how much I open the windows so airing the house out wasn’t an option today. The design of our house somehow brings all cooking smells directly upstairs and I wake up at night reliving the day’s foods (not always welcome in the middle of the night), so I decided to try to change tonight’s outcome. Time will tell if it worked. Hopefully it’s the granola I smell and not a combo of the fish and granola!

I love to make my own granola because there are so many ways you can customize it. I started with a couple of recipes and have made my own adjustments along the way. Each time is different depending on the ingredients I have on hand or on my mood. The basic recipe came from allrecipes.com. However, I also include elements of other recipes which I’ll note below and in the recipe.

Homemade Granola

Adapted from allrecipes.com

 Ingredients:

4 cups rolled oats

1 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup flax seed meal (ground flax seed)

1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark)

1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds (unsalted)

1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (unsalted)

1/2 cup sliced almonds (unsalted)

1/3 cup chia seeds (optional)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/3 cup canola oil (or extra light tasting olive oil or coconut oil, melted)

1/4 cup honey (or maple syrup or mix of honey and syrup)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or almond extract)

1/2 cup water

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (275 if using a dark colored pan).
2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, wheat germ, ground flax seed, brown sugar, sunflower seeds, pecans or walnuts, almonds, cinnamon and salt.
3. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the oil, honey or syrup, vanilla extract and water. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry, and stir with large spoon until blended. Spread on a non-stick coated cookie sheet (with sides) or a similar sized pan (at least 9×13 in.). If pan is not non-stick, spray it lightly with cooking spray first.
4. Bake for 1 hour in preheated oven, stirring every 20 minutes, or until toasted. Cool completely before storing in an airtight container. Freezes well.

Here’s where I change things up a bit.

Rolled oats – I’ve seen recipes that call for quick cook oats, old fashioned oats or a combination of the two. Whatever you have on hand is fine.

Wheat germ – I use a toasted wheat germ.

Sunflower seeds – I haven’t seen a big difference if I use raw or roasted, but I always make sure to use the unsalted variety.

Pecans or walnuts – I use whatever variety of nuts I have on hand – today I used a combination of toasted pecans, almonds and walnuts that I put on my daily cereal. Sometimes I only use one or two of them, but today I didn’t feel like chopping.

Sliced almonds – I find that I like slivered almonds so I try to use them when I have them. I like that extra crunch.

Oil – sometimes I use extra light tasting olive oil in place of the canola oil, but today I tried some melted coconut oil because I’m currently on a coconut oil kick. This should give it a nice coconut flavor.

Honey – it’s also good in combination with maple syrup or even all maple syrup – I’ve had to adapt as I go to make the recipe and suddenly don’t have enough honey. In a pinch I’m sure you could also use corn syrup.

Vanilla extract – almond extract is a good alternative.

Other ideas for add-ins include raw shredded coconut or other nuts prior to baking, or adding in dried fruits (think cherries, cranberries, raisins, etc.) after the granola has cooled. If the dried fruit is a little less than dry, you can just add in a sprinkle when the time comes to eat your granola. I like to add it separately so sometimes I can have it plain and other times I can have it with the fruit.

If you add in several dry ingredients, remember to bump up the amount of liquids a little so everything gets coated.

I find that the granola toasts more evenly if I bake it on a rimmed cookie sheet instead of the smaller baking pans originally suggested in the recipe.

Granola stores well in the freezer! I keep it in the freezer in a sealed container and scoop out what I need each time. I love to mix it with fruit and Greek yogurt, but it’s also a great ice cream topper, morning breakfast cereal, addition to your usual breakfast cereal or snack by itself.

The finished product - browned nicely and smelling wonderful!

I’d love to know what other ideas you have for making your own granola, and if you try it, please let me know your thoughts!

Flexible Wire Jewelry – How to Store

In an effort to try to help keep your flexible wire jewelry free of unwanted kinks and bends, I’ve put together a few pictures to help guide you in how to safely store and travel with those pieces. I’d love your feedback on it – does it make sense? Do you have a different method?

Step 1 - hold in both hands with palms facing you

Step 2 - flip right hand over so figure 8 forms, leaving your left hand as it was in step 1

Step 3 - fold figure 8 sort of like a book so that it's now a stacked 0

Step 4 - slide into zipper top bag for storage

When you place the necklace into the plastic storage bag, be sure that the piece is completely dry first (you don’t want to have just wiped it off with a damp cloth, or have just worn it on a hot summer day, for example).  If you have other pieces that match, such as earrings or a bracelet, I would recommend placing them in a smaller bag inside the larger one so they don’t tangle but they’re easy to find when you’re trying to match. Then place the plastic bag safely in your dresser drawer or among something soft like clothes in your suitcase so it doesn’t get damaged by other travel items.

When choosing a plastic bag, go larger rather than smaller. You don’t want it rolled up tightly for long term storage so that when you take it out again it’s all coiled and doesn’t want to resume its shape.

Of course you can always choose to hang your necklace on hooks or hangers with your other jewelry, but I find that this style of necklace in particular will tangle with other chains and necklaces very easily and cause you many wasted moments trying to get them apart.

This method may also be used with similarly made items such as rosaries, lanyards, etc. that are all strung together on a wire rather than separate bead links.

Beaded lanyard made on flexible wire - should be stored similarly to the method above so it doesn't get kinks

Medical ID Bracelets and Watch Bands

A friend’s mom got me started making stretchy medical ID bracelets. She needs to have an ID on at all times to alert medical personnel to her particular issues should an emergency arise. Until then, I had been using similar bands for my watches, enabling me to change them out whenever I wanted, but this was a new idea for me.

Stretch band interchangeable medical ID bracelet with clear and light blue glass beads and gold accents - on Etsy

My mom also decided to get one of the bracelets after she had surgery and now cannot have blood draws, blood pressure cuffs, etc. used on her right arm.

There are several choices for medical ID bracelets, but they both went with a stainless steel plate that is engraved with their personal information (they used StickyJ.com but you can do an internet search to find many options). You can choose a generic one, or have it personalized with a little or a lot of information. The companies that sell them typically sell the interchangeable bracelets to go with them, but sometimes they’re not in a style, color or size that suits your needs.

StickyJ blank ID tag - just one of many styles available - but similar to what my mom and my friend's mom ordered

Double row of blue iris seed beads - thin and comfortable for everyday use

For everyday use, my mom and my friend’s mom decided that the smaller seed beads were more comfortable (think about leaning your wrist on a table, etc.) but they also wanted some that are a bit more dressy or fun.

Stretchy bracelet with small glass beads in clear, green, aqua and accented with red and silver

Stretchy Band made with silver plated and dark grey glass pearl beads - a bit more dressy and maybe not as comfortable for daily wear - but fun!

Smaller beads in fun "girly" colors for medical ID bracelet

These interchangeable bands can be a fun and affordable way to accessorize while still keeping the needful information close at hand (pardon the pun!).

One of my first interchangeable watch bands that I'm still wearing today - bright pink, clear and silver

These can be custom designed to your preferred colors and sizes. Please contact me if you would like to design your own medical ID bands or watch bands. I’d be happy to make something just for you. Once you have your plate with the information on it, we can work on the measurements to determine the best length band for you.

Fun Wedding Favors and Decorations

While looking for someone who could make custom engraved wine glass charms for a wedding shower, I came across a fellow seller on Etsy – Laser Beam Creations. Though I have never met him, I discovered that Jeff has some pretty fun and unique items in his shop. For example, his message beans. At first, I really didn’t get what they were – it looks like a seed or bean that has a name or message burned into it.

The beans with the laser inscribed words or messages - great to give as wedding favors, Mother's Day gifts or for other occasions

But when I clicked on the alternate images I found out that once the beans are planted, the message from the outside of the bean shows up on the leaves of the growing plant!

Once the beans have been planted, the message shows up on the living plant

I think that’s very cool, and a unique (and green) way to spread your message!

He has other laser engraved items in his shop as well, including personalized champagne flutes, bud vases and votive candle holders, as well as pet ID tags, golf tees and more.

Engraved votive candle holder by Laser Beam Creations

So, as you are looking for unique party favors for weddings, anniversaries, Mother’s Day and more, I urge you to check out LaserBeamCreations, as well as the many other cool sellers on Etsy. Handmade is a great way to make your special event memorable (and it can be super affordable too!).

Happy shopping!

Bookmarks – still used or a thing of the past?

With the ever increasing popularity of e-readers (whether it be Kindle, Nook, iPad or other sources) and audio-books, the number of people reading real, honest-to-goodness paper bound books seems to be dwindling. I have to admit that I’m sometimes one of them.

While there is something to be said for holding that book in your hand and being able to flip through it, to go back to a spot to reread something or even to be able to see the spelling of unfamiliar words, there’s something attractive about e-books. My husband greatly appreciates the fact that now when I read in bed, most of the time I’m reading a book electronically. No more noisy page turnings or light blaring in his face. And clearly having multiple books on one single device, particularly when traveling, is a great benefit.

However, I recently read a book for my book group that I had borrowed from the library as a download, and I totally forgot that near the beginning of the book was a map that I could have referenced back to while reading. Not so easy to do on an e-book. I also like to listen to books on my iPod, particularly when I can hear the proper pronunciation of words that are unfamiliar to me (especially when the author is also the narrator), but then I sometimes can’t grasp the spelling and feel like I’m missing out.

I have made several beaded bookmarks the past few years but don’t find that they are selling as well as in the past. I’m just curious to know if they are still something worthwhile. My angle is that even if you don’t use one to read right now, they do look pretty when hanging in a book on your bookshelf or laying on the coffee table. Most people have some favorite reads that they’ll never get rid of, and who doesn’t like to look smart by having a bookshelf full of books? They make great gifts for teachers, book clubs, graduates, etc. We’ll never stop reading, but on the flip side we’ll never stop the progression of technology. Maybe instead of traditional bookmarks, there’s a way to come up with “Kindle bling” sort of like a cell phone charm?

My question is this – do you still read paper books, and do you still use bookmarks? What style do you prefer? Below are a few examples of ones I’ve made, but of course there are tons of styles out there (from pieces of scrap paper to ribbons and more). I’d  love for you to weigh in on the topic!

Long Gold Bookmark with Orange, White & Black ($7.00) - would be great in school or team colors!

Example of how corded bookmark lays top to bottom in center of book

Ribbon bookmark with beaded ends

Example of a beaded clip style bookmark

Cooking themed bookmark on Etsy

With upcoming gift giving occasions, including Mother’s Day, graduations, weddings and more, consider giving a gift of a special book paired with a lovely bookmark. How about a cookbook and a cooking themed bookmark? They would be great graduation gifts (maybe in school colors?) to remind the graduate to never stop reading.

Help keep the “real” book tradition alive!