Life Lately

Life sure does have a way of sneaking by some times! I can't believe it's been over 2 weeks since I last blogged! My parents were here last week, so I spent the prior week getting as much done before they got here, so I wouldn't have to work the whole time they were here. And this week I've been playing catch up since I didn't work as much last week. The game of life...lol :)

 

So I thought a nice Life Lately post to show you what I've been up to in the last 2 weeks was in order.

We finally got our new boat on the water! I wish I had a picture of the old boat next to the new boat so you could see just how beautiful the new one is! The cage has a metallic blue paint that really shines in the sun! And I love that I get to sit up top with Jesse on the new boat. It's a little scary up there! But I'm liking it :) Hoping to get it out this weekend as well.

As I mentioned, my parents were back last week. They stay with my grandparents when they are in Iowa, so I spend quite a bit of time there when they are home. I love that my grandma feeds the birds so I can watch them. This beautiful cardinal had a mate with him the whole week too...so cute!

Last Thursday marked the 2 year anniversary of my brother's passing. I still can't believe it's really been 2 years! How does that happen?!? Like last year, we wanted to spend the day doing things that my brother enjoyed. We went mushroom hunting in the afternoon and had some pretty descent luck. Then went to supper for Mexican that night. It sure was nice being with my parents that day!

This week has been catch up week and Mother's Day prep week. Cutting boards are popular again this year, so I'm lasering away recipes like crazy. It sure is nice having both lasers running. I can dedicate one to just cutting boards and the other to all the other orders.

But it hasn't been all work. Jesse and I did take a couple hours to get out and mushroom hunt on Tuesday. We found quite a few for not being out long, but they were rather small. They still tasted awesome for lunch yesterday! Nothing better than fresh morels!

Wordless Wednesday - Spring Blooms

 These little twigs will some day be beautiful lilac bushes!

Double the Fun!

As I mentioned back in January, one of my goals for the year was to get a second laser. In February I went and saw one in person and placed my order. I patiently waited for a month for the new machine to arrive. And boy was it worth the wait!

This new machine is twice as big and twice as powerful as my old machine! In fact, the old machine will fit inside the new one!

I haven't had a chance to do anything new with the new machine, but I've been able to complete orders more quickly. I just finished an order of 200 wedding invitations and it was nice to have one machine solely dedicated to those invitations and I could still work on other orders with the small machine.

Eventually I'm hoping to make larger pieces and the new machine will cut thicker pieces as well, so I'll be experimenting with that too. I've uploaded a quick video I took with my cell phone. I apologize it's not the greatest, but it will give you an idea of how the machines run.

Customer Appreciation

I can't tell you how happy it makes me when a customer sends me photos of the items they bought and what they use them for. And I got a lot of comments that you guys liked seeing the Squatch button and the fun bag it was used on. So today I thought I'd share a few recent photos I received from some other buyers.

Wedding photos are always fun to see. From seeing the grooms in my cuff links to the bridal party doing a toast with their personalized glasses. This photo includes 3 of my items. I made the tiny wooden tags for all the favor bags, the wooden card asking guests to sign the guest book and the guest book as well. It was so fun to see all of these items together at the wedding. I also made this couple some really cute anchor shaped cupcake toppers that I'm hoping to receive a photo of after they have their reception.

Another custom wedding request was for some little wooden boxes. This was for a very small wedding and each guest got a little box with their initial engraved on it. I really wish I would have taken some pictures before I shipped them out, but I love how the couple decorated these even more with the beautiful bows. It really takes the display and gift giving up a notch.

This last photo is just adorable! The buyer purchased buttons that said PUG LOVE. And you can see a tiny little button on the guy on the right's scarf. How cute!! And the buyer just ordered some PUG LIFE and PUG CHAT buttons this week as well.

Do you enjoy seeing photos of your work from buyers? Feel free to share a link if you've blogged about them :)

The Power of One Purchase

I recently had a fun request for some custom buttons. The buyer told me that they were doing a "sheep breed study" and wanted 12 buttons all with a different sheep breed and a little picture of a sheep engraved on the buttons. While I wasn't entire sure what the buttons were for, I was happy to make such cute little buttons :)

 

About a week after I shipped the buttons, I woke up to several emails from other customers wanting the same buttons! The buyer had posted a picture of her buttons on her Raverly group's page. The group is doing a year-long study on different fibers from the different sheep breeds! (okay, now it made sense.)

That one purchase turned into 6 more purchases! It's amazing the power one buyer can have. And while I'm the first to say that you don't need to participate in every social media out there. This does prove the power of social media as well.

What's even more fun, one buyer requested an extra button for a custom bag she was working on. She said it was for a spin along and the colors of the bag represented the different layers of the forest. She had named her bag Squatch (short for sasquatch) and wanted a custom button to finish it off. How fun is this and her bag looks great with it!

Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend

As we all know, girls love diamonds! And what better month to celebrate them than April!

Who knew diamonds came in so many forms and styles. I went searching on Etsy and found beautiful, dream-worthy engagement rings, raw cut diamonds, metal shaped diamonds and even diamonds made of concrete! There is definitely something for everyone and every budget here. Enjoy :)

Clockwise from top left:

Tiffany Engagement Ring with Channel Set Diamonds and matching wedding band - 4 Carats of Hand-Set Princess Sparkle

 6 Cement Diamonds, black, grey or mix

 1 Carat Raw Diamond Earrings - Sterling Silver Filigree Inspired

Cute and tiny open Diamond earrings

Which style of diamond is your favorite?

Anyone want to buy me that ring :)

A Whole New Man

If I didn't overload you with cuteness on Monday, maybe this will do it :) You might remember that Harley looked something like this a couple weeks ago. Fur, fur and more fur!!

Shortly after I took that picture, he got his summer 'do on. And he's even cuter now :)

Though he was being a brat and wouldn't smile for the camera!

He's so happy with his new hair cut. He likes to sleep in bed and lay on the couch with us. Whereas before, he slept under the bed and couch where it was cooler. He's more snuggly now and I ♥ it :)