Rachael's Handmade Designs

Well, Mother's Day is just around the corner, so thought I'd use my "Happy Mother's Day" stamp that I picked up last week to try and get back into making cards. This is how it turned out. I used some neat-o techniques on this card. I inked the writing on the stamp like one regularly would with a pad. Then, for the flower I flipped the stamp over and colored the flower with a special pen (specifically designed for this technique) and colored the stem green in the same manner. Then I stamped. After, I colored the flower in with a colored pencil and took a Q-Tip dabbed in olive oil (and blotted on a scrap piece of paper) and used that to blend where I had colored with the colored pencil.  I did the same for the paper flowers to the left of the card. I LOVE the results of this technique. Pretty, but boring, if you ask me. I am feeling frustration when it comes to my cards. I feel like I have to psych myself up to make them, and when I sit down and make a card it ...

It's here, it's here! Sale days have arrived! Right now in my shop, selected pieces are going for HALF OFF. Check it out! This sale is only good for three days - the savings won't last! Perfect for Mother's Day. I'm also getting back into youtube. I took a hiatus from youtube for a while because of school and I've just been so busy doing other things. But, I've posted some new videos in the last day or so. One is on my newest project for my craft storage and the other is a green and periwinkle party makeup look. You should stop by, have a view, and leave a comment if you can.  http://www.youtube.com/user/RMBrackett  I would really appreciate it! I'm also kind of upset because my JVC camcorder won't hold a charge. I looked it up and I may need a new battery. :( Until then, I suppose I'm going to have to keep the camcorder plugged in. *SIGH* So a new battery for my ipod and a new battery for my JVC camcorder. Hmm. I guess this paycheck goes to ...

While I was at Good Will (I often go to find little trinkets of goodness) I found a bathroom storage container that would work *perfectly* as a decorative craft storage container. It's one of these white formica/pressboard bathroom storage cabinets, you know the kind you hang above your toilet with the little doors. We'll see what a good sanding and a couple slaps of paint will do for her. I picked a seafoam color because my room accents are seafoam and blue. It's one of my favorites and I think, if I decided to leave some if it white, it will look really good. I'm not sure if you can even sand formica. All I really need to do is rough it up a bit so the paint has something to grab on to. My roommate said that it would take forever to sand by hand, so I'm looking into an electric sander of sorts.  I hope I don't have to take the piece apart! That would be more than I bargained for. I'm excited to take before and after pictures and record this process t...

Fair season is just around the corner in Seattle! Which means for all of you doing your craft fairs, you are starting to feel the pressure. My first fair is next month, and I am starting to feel unprepared, for sure. I’ve managed to purchase a gazebo, a table, a merchandising rack for my cards, pay my dues to the fair, and stock up a little bit on my products. But now what? I e-mailed my contact at the street fair and she tells me the traffic flow should be somewhere around 50,000 + over the two day street fair, which I knew going in, but WOW! I’m feeling kind of a mix of excitement and dread all at once. Anyways, I’ve set up my booth twice since I purchased it, and it only takes about 25 minutes. I still need another table, some wooden dinner trays and a lot of white beans to be able to display my jewelry. Also I need to tag all of my items and them for in-person purchasing. In addition to that, I still need bags, extra satin extra supplies for making more product, a spiral bound n...

Last week while I was house-sitting I made a funny little card/invitation. I tried a few new techniques and used a new Cricut cartridge (Songbird) for this card. Although I can't say that I'm *totally* stoked about how this card turned out, I think it was a more of a 'first draft' to make mistakes on and to learn and try out different things on. (Sewing, more layers, a different technique of inking, etc.) I've been trying to make this card work for WEEKS. It just. wouldn't. work. Maybe it doesn't even now, what do YOU think? (For more photos, you can see my flickr here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/reactionphotography/)

As I sit here with my morning coffee and bagel with cream cheese and locks, I am filled with the thrill of a purchase from my etsy shop. Unfortunately this purchase has gone unpaid. False hope! LOL This is the first time in my nearly a year of being on Etsy (seriously, this month is my anniversary - look for specials!) that a purchase has gone unpaid. I've heard stories of shoppers not completing said purchases, but have never experienced it for myself until the last few days. Good thing I have my three-day policy in place! If you yourself don't have such a policy in place, I suggest if you sell your crafts, particularly online, that you set one up so "shoppers" who shop without paying don't mess with your listings. (Seriously?! Why take something off the market unless you can pay for it? Very irritating.) Also, I should bring to your attention that I have now been on Etsy for one year this month. IN HONOR OF MY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY ON ETSY, I AM RUNNING A HALF ...

Hello! I made some new additions to the shop within the last day or so. Photographing the pieces was fun, but after the sun started going down it cooled off and my hands started to freeze. I could only photograph 2-3 at a time! You can see the shots on my flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/reactionphotography/ I also added a gadget from the etsy site. I invite you to take a look around! Don't forget to favorite me! I'm working on more pieces currently; I'm excited to photograph more of the items I currently have available but haven't had the chance to post yet. I was house-sitting over the last two weeks and I had some things in which to create, but not *all* of my things, so I kept having to run back and forth. Oh well! I've made a couple sales in the last two days, so I went ahead and purchased some more supplies. I like to deal with Dang's Supplies on etsy, even tho they ship from Korea and it takes longer. They have more of a selection, and a ...

Well hello. By way of introduction, my name is Rachael. I am a daughter, artist, lover, friend, photographer, writer, nerd, videographer, paralegal, student and generally all-around expressive being. I'm a happy gal living and working in Seattle. I've always been a very crafty and expressive person, so last year I started my own etsy shop. Today I was inspired to try something new. So I started this blog, which I actually started a while ago but have not kept up on. The purpose of this blog is to get my creative juices flowing, communicate with people, promote my etsy site, make friends and business contacts, write reviews, and of course, have fun. That being said... Currently there are items in my shop waiting to be selected as the perfect gift or note to say hello! Check it out if you have not already. I have some new ideas for my etsy site: http://www.etsy.com/shop/etsyketsy123 which should be available for Mother's Day (may 9th.) I'm not going to reveal the...