BLOG :: Cottage Industrialist - Various and Sundry Things

Well, it's that time of year again. While I don't care about receiving flowers or chocolate on February 14 (or the 18th, for that matter), I find that, as with most things, my enthusiasm is far greater when I consider the holiday through my kiddo's eyes. And, since he seems to see the world as one giant construction site/rocket ship launch pad for mankind, this year I put together these rocket ship valentines. Well, we did. Le kid was instrumental in the design of the ship, though he is a little disappointed that "da Spaceman" doesn't have a face. And I'm a little disappointed that I can't draw faces. We are both learning to live with disappointment. It doesn't mean we can't share the love.

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Friday

01Jan2010

Resolved: A calendar, the seasons, our food, and a plan (of sorts)

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Friday, January 1, 2010 at 5:29AM |

Happy New Year!

I love New Year's Day. New Year's Eve, not so much. But New Year's Day I love. Especially when it falls on a Friday. Other than the long weekend aspect, I love, love, love the food. In South Carolina we traditionally eat pork, collard greens, and peas and rice (or Hoppin' John) on New Year's Day. Like many food cultures, each of these foods symbolizes a hope for the new year—for plentiful food, money, and luck.

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Monday

30Nov2009

Free Card and Tiny Envelope Printables Galore!

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Monday, November 30, 2009 at 10:10PM |

Who doesn't love a nifty envelope? These days security envelopes are all the rage in crafty circles, and it's not hard to see why--they combine good, clean design with a little mystery.

In the spirit of that mystery and the fun that comes with surprising friends and family with a surcee or two at the holidays or any other time, I came up with a set of gift cards (or calling cards or charade-clue-cards or whatever else you want them to be) and tiny, matching envelopes that feature two of my favorite fabric patterns. And because I can't ever leave well enough alone, I went wild and added 4 new colorways to each pattern.

I designed the cards to be compatible with Avery pre-cut business cards (look for products 5881, 8373, 8869), but I printed mine on plain-ole cardstock and just cut-em out. I've included cut lines to make it a little easier if you go that route. If you want to type a message on the cards, you can use the fill-in-able fields in the PDF--whatever you type in one field will automatically show up as the text in all the others.

But, really, it's all about the envelopes, isn't it? These are just the right size to enclose a single card or a store-bought gift card. And they come together in a jiffy. Just cut around the edges, slice into the slit marked on the big flap with an x-acto, and tape the two side flaps to the big flap. When you're ready to seal the envelope, the top flap slips into the cut you made in the big flap. Fun!

Each card file contains 8 cards, 4 in each pattern. And each envelope file contains 2 envelopes, one in each pattern, and some strips of patterned paper that you can use to enrobe a tiny box, hang an envelope from your christmas tree. We used these at my house on Thanksgiving as place cards and napkin rings.

I meant for us to tuck cards into each envelope with a word or two about what we are all thankful for, but we never got to it. C'est la vie, non?

I've grouped each download into the colorway to which it belongs, each inspired by my dreams of Morroco (nope, never been there, just dreams)--download one or download 'em all, just remember these are for your personal, non-commercial use only.

Fez: Download the printable cards. Download the printable envelopes.

Marrakech: Download the printable cards. Download the printable envelopes.

Casablanca: Download the printable cards. Download the printable envelopes.

Byzantine: Download the printable cards. Download the printable envelopes.

Tangier: Download the printable cards. Download the printable envelopes.

Wasn't that fun?

If you haven't already entered my Holiday Fabric Giveaway, there's still time to enter--get crackin'!

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Thursday

19Nov2009

Geek love: just because

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Thursday, November 19, 2009 at 7:28AM |

Because today is Thursday. And because I am a geek.

I designed this geek love printable last year and sold it in my short-lived Etsy store. To, like, one person. But I know there are other geeks in love out there. So. Have at it. The download includes the folded card and envelope shown above, a plain graph card for you to get creative with, and graph wrapping paper (shown below).

Download the whole package here. Instructions for printing, cutting, folding, and gluing are included.

As always, please be nice. Do not sell, modify, or redistribute for anything other than personal use. And if you'd like to link to the printable, please link to this post!

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Tuesday

10Nov2009

Still Crazy after All this Year

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Tuesday, November 10, 2009 at 1:54AM |

Blogiversary?! Last year this time I started this blog not sure where it would lead me. I never could have imagined all of the fun I've had, late nights I've spent, and friends I've made or reconnected with along the way. I have certainly put in a good bit of work, but what I have received in return has benefited me 10-fold.

So what do you get your blog when it turns one? Free printables, of course! I was so pleased with the way the tags turned out for my bake sale items last week that I thought I would share.

These come together quite easily--each sheet has 10 labels of one pattern. If you print them at 100%, you should be able to trim the top and bottom 1/2 inch and then cut in 1-inch increments (shortways) to get each tag. Then use a glue stick or sticker machine to make the back side tacky and wrap around the top of a cellophane bag or a gift bag handle. Or fold in half, make a two-sided tag, and punch a hole. If you come up with other nifty uses, I'd love to see pictures!

Each PDF is a fill-in. Of course, if you want to hand write your own message, just clear the fields with text and print them blank. Enjoy!

(As always, these are for personal use only. All patterns and files are copyright Cameron Blazer/Cottage Industrialist. Common sense and kindness should be your guide.)

Anytime tags - Even though these are not color coordinated, I used each of these for the items at last week's bake sale, and because each item was packaged the same way, that tied the look together and made it cohesive without being matchy-matchy. Of course, you can use one at a time, as well.

Holiday tags - Ok, I know! Thanksgiving isn't even here yet, and I'm cursing every time I walk into a store...in November...when it's still 80 degrees in SC...and I come out whistling "Sleigh Bells," too. Yuck. But if, like me, you dream of a completely handmade holiday, you know now's the time to kick into gear to avoid pulling an all-nighter on December 24. I will be making reusable holiday giftbags from my fabrics in these same designs (if you are as nuts as I am, you can purchase the holiday fabrics directly through the Spoonflower marketplace. Nifty, eh?!). At least that's the plan. If that doesn't materialize, at least I'll have some cute tags to attach to my brown kraft paper wrapping.

Whether you've been here all along or are just tuning in, I hope you know how much I have enjoyed sharing this corner of my world with you (I don't mean to sound like Mr. Rogers--it's rare that I express genuine appreciation sans snark, so just go with it!), and I look forward to what the next year has in store. Cheers!

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