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Man alive, I love it when a dream comes out of nowhere, seeps into your brain, knocks you off your feet and then dances off waving it's arms around. I am always quite blindsided but very appreciative.
I ordered a THIS arrow stamp last week because I knew I would use it all the time in my Project Life album. I can already see it everywhere… on journaling cards in addition to the text. On photos, pointing at Paul. On photos, pointing at anything really. So I designed it and printed it because I knew it would fill a NEED in my life craft projects.
Then I shared photos, and there was a bit of interest and questions of "where can I get that?" on Instagram. And the wheels started turning. Just a little bit – enough to make me stop and think. But I pushed it to the back of my mind. I mean really. I had filled the end of April with a lot of stuff already! The top secret project! And summer minibooks! And re-running the blog workshop! And The Blog! I have to blog! And also! Where were you, turning wheels in February? And then in March? I could have used you then!
But last week, on Tuesday night, I couldn't sleep thinking about the stamps. (Well that, and the rainstorm that I was fairly certain was going to drown my 18 basil plants.)
So I woke up Wednesday morning and got to work. (First I had to decipher all the thoughts I had emailed to myself late Tuesday night – it was a hot mess). Then I sent some emails about wholesale rubber stamp pricing. I practiced packaging and figured out how much shipping would set me back. I played with my pricing and ran and re-ran the numbers. I made notes and cut up paper.
When I realized this plan could actually work, I got serious : WHAT DO I WANT FROM MY STAMPS?
Well first, I want them mounted on wood. I have always had trouble with unmounted stamps because I don't like to take the time to mount them to something. I never know how to properly store them. I love the designs, but for me and my projects, they tend to go unused. So these were going to have wooden blocks attached. The downside is they are more expensive that way – for me to produce and for you to buy. But man, the quality is just great and you can't beat the fact that they are ready to go.
And second, I want simple. Simple, simple, simple. The arrow was already prototyped and totally rad, so it was a big yes. Which meant I needed a few more designs that complimented the arrow and were just as versatile. I wanted these to be stamps that would work with paper projects. (Hello, Project Life.) But also stamps that would be just as fantastic on the back of an envelope or at the top of note.
"You're my favorite" is one of my favorite expressions ever, so that had to be a stamp.
And "you are here" was a good partner to that and seemed like a good thing to stick on just about anything.
The next one is TODAY IS and I actually love it the most. And here's why : it's a fill in. Stick the date in there (it fits a date stamp perfectly). Or stick a word in there – adjective, noun, whatever. Use your handwriting. I love the look of handwriting with block font. It's my favorite. And guess what, there's a stamp for that.
And then, after I ordered those three new samples I realized that what my crafting life really needs is a "that's what she said" stamp. I shouted it out to Paul and he agreed wholeheartedly (and with much more enthusiasm than he'd put forth for the others). Obviously, "that's what she said" carries the joke-factor, but it's also pretty rad for jotting down actual quotes. Of course, if I had a SHE said, I had to have a HE said. So TA-DA, two more stamps were born. (They're faternal twins.)
So in sum : I have created a small collection of wood mounted stamps. They are fantastically crafted (in the USA!) and super fun and easy to use.
You can pay via paypal and I'll ship worldwide. I will only stock them for a few months. Why, you ask? Because I don't think this is a practical shop to run for years and years. Too much back and forth, too much re-ordering, too difficult to stockpile and to keep it real, too little profit for the amount of work it takes to run, package and ship. So if you're interested, grab them. They will absolutely not sell out (and I'll warn you before the shop closes) but they will not always be available.
And thank you, thank you. For supporting my creative adventures and listening to my rambling. I am feeling good today and so excited about this launch.
enJOY it 
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