Shipping gifts

Buying online and sending as a gift without seeing the piece first?  Here are a few things to consider when choosing what to buy, and where to buy from:

1.  Does the store offer gift-wrapping?  And is there a charge?  Part of the fun of a gift is the unveiling, and opening a cardboard box to find a wrapped gift inside is so special.  Even if it is just tissue with a sticker, packaging is important!

2. What about a gift message?  If they do, be sure to include one, if for no better reason than so the person you are sending it knows who it is from.  They will want to know to thank you for their gift.

3.  What is their return policy?  To avoid the dreaded fate of ending up in the “re-gifting” drawer, if there is any uncertainty on the gift be sure to buy from a shop with a good return policy.  You’re giving a gift because you want the recipient to have something they like and will use, after all.

4. Where are they shipping from?  For US customers this doesn’t seem to be so much of an issue since customs is seldom collected by the USPS, but for anyone outside of the US it can be an added expense.  It varies from country to country, but across the board I’ve heard that customs are more likely to be charged on parcels shipped from a company, rather than one that looks like it is shipped from an individual, even if it is insured.  If you’re shipping a gift overseas, do some research.  You’d hate to have the recipient of your gift have to pay 10% of the value to get it from the post office!

5. What shipping method do they use? Will it require a signature? If you’re shipping or giving something that will not just be left on the doorstep if the recipient isn’t home, consider sending it to their office instead.  That way you can be sure there is someone there to sign for it.  After all, how many people really want to drive to the UPS, FedEx, or USPS pick-up sites on the weekend?

Just things to consider with the holidays fast approaching!

Happy giving,

C

Leave the tag on

For Father’s Day this year I bought my husband a tie from Gresham Blake in Brighton.  Since we were there for his work and I neglected to pack my wrapping paper, I asked the friendly and purple-haired saleswoman if she could wrap it for me.  She said that they had a bit of tissue she could put it in, and asked me if I would like her to take the price tag of.  I said “Yes, please,”  and asked “does anyone actually say no to that?”  She replied, “You’d be surprised.  Some people want the person to know how much they paid.”

How bizarre!  Well, I guess then I need not have been so embarrassed last I gave a gift with the price tag still attached if some people do that on purpose!

xo,

C

Baby, baby

Putting together a baby gift?  I have some suggestions, and where not all are handmade, they are luxurious and unusual, and would surely be treasured by the new parents.

Possibly the best, and most adorable rattle, of all time is this one by Anne Claire Petit.  I haven’t been able to find it in the US, but it’s worth buying from wherever you can find it.  My daughter first found it in Fortnum & Mason when she was 9 months old, and she would not let it go.  To the best of my deciphering skills, it is a plastic rattle with metal bells inside with either a crocheted pink or blue stripe covering.  The crocheted rattle is soft and light, and easy for baby to make lots of pleasing sounds with!

 

For any Happiest Baby on the Block parents, a good set of swaddle blankets is a must.  We had the best luck with the Aden and Anais muslin swaddles.  They are lightweight and breathable and can make a really tight swaddle to keep baby extra cozy.  I gave a set of these to my brother-in-law and he still raves about how they were the best baby present he got.

 

And last, how about a handmade blanket?  This Mod Blanket by Rowley Baby makes a wonderful newborn gift, and the generous sizing of the blanket means it can start out as a tummy time or stroller blanket, and be used into childhood.  The soft underside gives this blanket a good shot at being the favorite, since it will just get softer with use!

For more baby suggestions, check out this article on SheKnows Parenting and look for a familiar name! 

Happy Monday,

C

Back to school bags

So the little kiddos have gone back to school, but the big kids have not.  The best “back to school” gift for anyone going to college, pursuing a graduate degree, or undergoing a change of careers is a grownup book bag.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Hippo Bags, The Sakanella Satchel – I’d call this the “rugged classic” and it retails for $1060, comes in five colors with four hardware choices.  I like the Tobacco with two straps, horseshoe style in silver.

JD Leatherworks, The Messenger – Can’t find a price, or much info, only photos on Flickr, but I like it just the same.  I’d call this the “modern” since it has very clean lines and the leather appears un-dyed.  The natural tooling leather will create a beautiful patina over time if you leave it just the way it is. 

 

Laba Bags, Gang of Four No. 2  I am totally in love with these.  I can’t find an online shop for them, but I bet if you asked really nicely, you could have one shipped from the guy in Thailand who makes them.  They have that perfect retro-Asian fusion that I love so much. He makes killer yoga bags, too.

 

Aspinal of London, Calvary Messenger Bag – I am a bit obsessed with English fashion at the moment, so this should be no surprise.  This one I might call “Metro Prep” if I had to call it anything.  The sporty strap with the smooth leather is a sophisticated combination for high school, college, graduate school or even a professional.   Retails for $589.00.

ReLoad, Superluxe – these remind me a little bit of Timbuk2, but not everyone will have one.  And they are all made in-house (my guess is that this means handmade, but no longer by one artist).  Best of all, they indulge custom orders!  Definitely the “sporty” one, but still sophisticated.  Prices start at $215.

Need more ideas?  Design Tavern does a list of 20 Stunning Handmade Messenger Bags, including the Woody Bag by Moxie and Oliver.

Happy shopping.

C

A little scare from the CPSIA

 

A good friend of mine makes children’s clothes and other goodies, some of which we sell on Alere Modern.  Her line is Mama Meah, and for the last few weeks she has been fretting about the CPSIA (Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act) requirements, and what this might mean for her handmade baby goods.  At first look, it really seems that the CPSIA standards could eliminate handmade baby goods from the market.   The testing requirements are stringent, and there are no exemptions for small manufacturers/craftspeople.  There are no exemptions for Aunt Ida, or the thoughtful people who knit hats for newborns.  None.

Personally I hate this idea.  The idea that handmade baby goods would just go out the window is horrifying.  As the new-ish mom to a lovely little girl (she is now almost 15 months old!) I truly treasure the handmade gifts that my daughter and I have been given.  Her current favorite is a No-Sew Fleece Blanket made by her nanny.  She loves the soft, soft fleece, and will pretend to take naps on it, and wave “goodnight” to me.  Handmade blankets and other baby gifts – quilts, clothing, and bibs – are, in my mind, inseparable from the experience of bringing a child into the world.  They are an expression of love and devotion to the child, and the kind of carefully crafted life you are introducing them to. I can’t imagine a baby shower where everything is purchased from Walmart. 

So I spent a morning and a half researching the CPSIA standards, and the most helpful thing that I found was an article put out by the CPSIA, and directed at small manufacturers.  Where small businesses are not exempt, there is a list of materials that are exempt.  As long as you, as a craftsperson, a reseller, a grandmother, and a parent, are careful to use only the items in this list, and you sew in a label, it seems as though you are in compliance. 

To be in compliance without sending your pieces out for costly testing is very restrictive, and the testing really doesn’t make sense for a lot of small businesses.  There are groups like the Handmade Toy Alliance who are lobbying for exemptions for small manufacturers. I’m not even sure I want to weigh in – I love handmade, love small businesses, but I also love my daughter.  I try to use common sense in anything that I give her, especially since most of it ends up in her mouth, but I do want to trust that the toys that are marketed to babies are safe for them to use.  Ultimately, I think that there need to be some regulations, and maybe the answer is component certification so that artists/craftspeople could buy child-safe parts, and as long as they only use these (and don’t create crazy small parts out of them) the product would be considered compliant.

I’m by no means an expert on this, but after spending the morning + researching and reading, to find out what it means for me, and the artists that I love and support, I thought I’d share the results!  I was supposed to be blogging about something else, I’m sure, but the desire to continue giving handmade baby gifts seems so important.   I still have the baby quilt that my grandmother made for me when I was born.  My daughter has several beautiful quilts and blankets that were made for her before her birth.  This is a tradition that shouldn’t die, and I’m hoping that by sharing the CPSIA approved ways to make baby clothes and items, that it can continue.

Happy making, and giving,

Caitlin

It Looks Nothing Like Christmas

It’s finally summer in Seattle – it has been hovering around 80 degrees for the last week – so why am I thinking about Christmas?  Easy:  the decorations at Costco are already up!  It is terrifying to be walking around in shorts (in the Northern Hemisphere, that is)and seeing Halloween costumes and Christmas decorations.  It is still summer!  But the holidays are coming sooner than I think, and if I don’t want to stick myself in the same situation I was in last year, I better start planning now!

Last year I made fourteen Christmas stockings and hosted my first family Christmas.  The individual stockings were pretty easy – just felt with little applique pieces on them – but fourteen of them took a while.  Especially when each one is different!

 

So here is your shopping list for stockings:

1.  Felt for the body of the stockings – I used approximately 3 yards for all 14, so if you are making fewer you can get a lot less.

2.  You can buy a pattern for the stockings.  Just look through the pattern books and find one you like the shape of.  Or you can always use a big piece of paper (newspaper would work particularly well) and cut your own stocking shape to use as a template.

3. Different colors of felt for the applique – I just bought a pile of the small squares of felt in the craft section of Joanne Fabrics.  I tried to not use too many colors, and keep them somewhat consistent with the other colors in my home (I’ve since painted my living room, so we will see how they work this year!).

4.  A few yards of ball trim, or other trim, for the bottom of the “cuff” on the top of the stocking.

5.  Some coordinating felt for the “cuff” of the stocking (I cut these from some of the white felt squares I bought at Joanne – that is how I was sure that I could get a straight edge! I got two per square)

6.  Embroidery floss for the decorative stitching, and regular thread (we used white) for the machine stitching.

7.  Some cord or seam binding for the loops at the top. This could match the cuff, but it doesn’t have to.

Once I had all my materials, I set to work.  I cut out all the stocking shapes, as well as the cuffs.  My husband pinned the ball trim to the cuffs, then stitched it on a sewing machine.  I cut out little felt pieces for the animals and pinned them to the stocking fronts.  As you can see from the photos above, I used a really big and quite obvious stitch with the embroidery thread.  I love the way it turned out – but I have kind of a folk art style!  All of the animals looked like they’d already eaten Christmas dinner at least once.

Once I had the applique done, the rest was easy.  I sent each stocking downstairs to my husband where he pinned the top of the “cuff” to the top of the stocking (they are only on the front of the stocking, the back is solid burgundy) and did one machine stitch to attach the two together.  Then he pinned the front and back together with a piece of seam binding in the top, and stitched all the way around the outside, leaving just the top open for inserting goodies.  And voila!  Several days later, here they are -

I love they way they all turned out. Fourteen in all, each with a different animal representing the person whose stocking it was.  Mine is the bunny.  Everyone who came to Christmas last year contributed a handmade item to each stocking, so we all had a little collection of handmade goodies to go home with.   I know it is only the first of September, but I’m already thinking of what I am going to make for the stockings this year.  I made Chocolate Truffles with Sea Salt from the Pioneer Woman’s recipe last year and those are going to be hard to beat!

I love this idea for a holiday gathering, and it isn’t just for Christmas.  Any type of holiday gathering could do something similar, you just need a vessel.  Baskets, buckets, bags, boxes – anything you can fill will work.  It is kind of like an unrestrained cookie exchange.  Almost everyone brought something edible – truffles, biscotti, homemade apple butter – except my stepfather, Rob Snyder, who brought us all little glass birds. 

It was a memorable Christmas, so much so that I am already thinking of ways to make this one just as great.  First I have to figure out if I need to start making more stockings!

Happy what is left of summer,

Caitlin