Friday Features - Birds on a Wire

This past week has given me hope that Spring is just around the corner! The temperatures have been nice and I've even heard a few birds singing in the mornings. And the last couple weeks, we've had tons of birds hanging out on our power lines, barn and corn crib. They even come up and eat the cat food...lol!

I had fun searching Etsy for fun Birds on a Wire art, decor and jewelry. I hope you'll enjoy!

 Metal Art / Earrings / Necklace / Towel

Any signs of Spring in your neck of the woods?

Wordless Wednesday - Steve-O

Steve-O

Are Mustaches Out?

I have to say, I was really happy with the sales of Valentine's Day cards this year! I don't remember selling more than a handful in years past and this year's sales were pretty nice.

 

One thing I noticed was that my popular mustache card from years past wasn't nearly as popular this year. In fact, I only sold one. And then I got to thinking that I hadn't sold very many mustache cuff links recently either. It makes me wonder if the mustache trend is finally over?

I am happy to report that my new Moon and Back design did really well. And now I need to get a sample made for 5th anniversary cards as I think this design will do well for anniversary cards as well.

What trends have you noticed fading or taking the spotlight recently?

Friday Features - Last Minute Valentine

If you're like me, I tend to leave Valentine's Day gifts to the last minute! Which is why these fun printable Valentines come in so handy with only 2 days left to do our shopping! Anything to do with wine and coffee and you have my attention. Anything to do with beer and you've got Jesse's :) We're both pretty big fans of Netflix, so these cards would all be perfect!

Wine / Beer / Netflix / Coffee & Donut

 

Which is your favorite?

New Leather Koozies

Woohoo, finally getting some new items listed in the shop!

I'm going to be honest with you...I first started engraving these koozies for fall shows back in September. I finally got pictures taken of them in November. And I'm just now getting them listed!

Does that ever happen to you? I'm not going to lie, I have a huge back log of items that are photographed that just need edited and listed. (truth be told, I just realized I actually engraved my first koozies last summer for friends and family!)

Okay, on to these cool koozies! I can't tell you how much I love them! And I've engraved a couple for Jesse too and they hold up really well. He's pretty hard on koozies and these are practically indestructible!

I've designed a couple samples for groomsmen gifts and for the 3rd anniversary, which is the leather anniversary.

 

Of course, with everything I make, these can be engraved with any wording, logo or design you'd like. Custom requests are always welcome :)

Life Lately

I apologize for the blog being so quiet last week. The week started off a little hectic and disorganized and really never got any better. It was kind of a mess, to be honest. Things really got messy on Thursday, when the factory that Jesse works at (and where I used to work) announced that they would be letting go of 250 employees, retaining only 85 workers.

In a small town, in a small rural community, this is a huge hit! And with it being one of the best paying jobs in the area, it makes the hit even harder. Jesse was one of the lucky ones who gets to keep his job...for now. Which leaves us in an awkward situation. It's a little bit like survivor's guilt. At the same time, we know it's only a matter of time before they close the doors for good and Jesse will be in the same boat.

All my mind can think about lately is the 250 friends and former co-workers who will be losing their jobs. The 250 families who will be without insurance. The 250 jobs that this area won't be able to take on.

But I always try to look on the bright side...find the silver lining. I am grateful every day that I was able to leave the factory and pursue my dreams. Today, I am even more thankful I took the chance and made the decision I did to leave. I can't image Jesse and I losing our jobs at the same time!

So for now, we ride it out and wait to see what happens. We know the future closing of the plant is inevitable, but right now we are okay, at that's what I have to focus on.

My Baby Turns the Big 1-0!

Looking at him, he still looks like a puppy. But my baby turns 10 today! I took some time over the weekend to look through old photos and found 11 great pictures to share with you of Harley's fun-filled life :)

I'm wishing him many more to come!

• 1. April '06 - The day we brought him home. He was no bigger than the wheel on the grill and could sleep in his food dish.
• 2. May '07 - Within a year, he was already a furball!
• 3. July '08 - The first summer we got him shaved. Jesse hated his floofy tail...I loved it :)
• 4. June '09 - Nose to nose with one of our new kittens. I'm not sure either one of them knew what to think!
• 5. August '10 - Harley's first airboat ride. This boy loves to go for rides!
• 6. July '11 - Since day one, he has been a Daddy's Boy!
• 7. February '12 - Meeting his cousin Charlie, the Great Dane, who is now the size of a horse!
• 8. July '13 - Enjoying Iowa sweet corn. He's just a little spoiled :)
• 9. April '14 - He might pretend not to like her, but these two are best friends. I catch them laying in the yard together all the time :)
• 10. November '15 - My constant companion. While he might be a Daddy's Boy, he hangs out with me all day in my studio if it's too cold to be outside all day (where he'd prefer to be).
• 11. January '16 - That face still melts my heart ♥