Friday, April 17, 2009

I Heart Maggie Blue Designs (and a Giveaway)



I am so very excited to have the pleasure of Featuring Maggie Blue Designs on Project Mommyhood. I have drooled over her fabulous personalized Candid Memory Illustrations and Cards....and have on many occasions dreamed of going to the Library with Pooh....carrying his books in one of her The Monster Ate My Tote Bag.




She is an amazingly talented Lady....whose products are full of Fun and Whimsy....and a wonderful childlike sense of humor....



http://www.maggiebluedesigns.blogspot.com/


Here is my chat with Maggie:


PM: When did you start crafting and why?


MBD: I think I've always crafted. When I was 10 I made a bikini for my sister out of hot glue and fabric. She never wore it in public though...I wonder why? The literal answer would be October. I'm a chemist professionally, but I've never enjoyed what I do. One day my boss made me mad and I couldn't sleep, so I pulled out an old sketchpad and started sketching. By morning I had a dozen pages filled with ideas. I decided to start simple with my fleece hats and sell on ETSY. Then it just kept growing.


PM: What do you love most about your craft?
Coming up with an idea, sketching it out and then making it come to life. Some ideas work out better than others, but at worst the bad one is a learning experience and the best ones become great products.

PM: What is your favorite item that you have available right now?

MBD: That's hard to answer. I love bright colors and things that stand out, so probably my monster tote. But some of my Easter baskets were so cute it was hard to send them away!




PM: Do you have any exciting plans for your shop in the near future?
MBD: YES! I plan to grow the illustration-side of the business. It's terribly fun to turn someone's picture or memory into something new that they can cherish. It allows me to feel apart of their life-story for a brief moment in time. But even bigger than that, I'm working on a website right now. A webstore actually. It will feature my products initially, and then as it grows I would like to pull in some other artisans to sell on my site as well. All handmade, high quaility and unique stuff for kids (and maybe moms too eventually).
PM: What do you find the most exciting and rewarding part of being a mom?

MBD :How do you answer that in a paragraph? We have a saying in my family, it started with my mom. I'll digress for a second because I think the history is important. My mom's mom worked her whole life. Her life was serious, and hard...and I think sadly, it was boring. She had two kids and a full time job. Because my mom's house was so quiet and sterile growing up she wanted tons and tons of kids. But, she could only have two...I was the last. So she started doing foster care, then adopting. In 21 years she had 6 kids. Two biological, four adopted, two boys, four girls, two black, four white...etc etc. We have an awesome family portrait. Anyway, she liked to use the phrase "just us chickens." As in "tomorrow is a just-us-chickens-day." This came to mean a day spent together just having fun. That was the key...she didn't want life to be hard or sterile or quiet for her kids (and it wasn't). When I had my first child I starting using this phrase too. Since I work this phrase has a stronger meaning because not every day can be a just-us-chickens day...so when I tell my oldest that it's a "chickens day" (our shortened version) she gets very excited. To see her eyes light up knowing we get to spend the day together...it's the little things like that. My kids melt my heart on a daily basis. What could be better than that?


PM: What advice would you give to other moms who may be thinking of getting into crafting and perhaps wanting to sell online?

MBD: Start small and see what happens. This is why ETSY is great. You can start up for next-to-nothing. I made the mistake of jumping in too fast without thinking it through. I did craft fairs in the fall and ended up making lots and lots of products that didn't sell. It took me a while to dig out of the money pit, but sale-by-sale I dug my way out. Now I generally don't make a product unless there is an order for it, or I'm working on a prototype. It helps keep costs down. Take it step by step, don't rush. Sometimes you don't find your niche for a while. I started by making hats, but I've found I prefer making bags, and it seems to be what people really like. I try to sew something everyday, whether I have an order or not. It keeps the creative juices flowing. I also try to learn a new technique as often as I can. People will ask me how I learned to do this or that...and honestly...sometimes I don't remember. You just try and see. The first time I appliqued something I took an old pair of shorts and tried 5 different kinds of fusing material and 4 different kinds of stitching until I figured out what worked. (And in reality it took months to fine tune which to use when...so don't lose heart with any new technique) Always be ready to learn something new...you never know what great idea might come from it!



Maggie is SO awesome....she has graciously provided Project Mommyhood with a fabulous Piece to Giveaway to one Very Lucky Reader. This Piece is Brand New....exclusively for Project Mommyhood...How Fab-u-lous is that? (see I told ya she was amazing)








All you need to do...Go to Maggie Blue Designs , peruse her shop...then come back and tell me what your favorite item is....



Blog or Tweet about this giveaway and recieve an extra 5 entries...(Please Leave a link to the tweet or blog post on the first of the 5 entries)


Contest Will Begin at Midnight Friday April, 17 (EST) and end on Wednesday, April 22nd at 11:59 PM (PST)


The winner will have 48 hours to respond with name and address before a new winner is chosen.....



Hatley

51 comments:

Green said...

Bright as the sun personalized purse would be the one for me!

If you haven't mailed my onesie yet would you donate it to someone for me?
click

Robin@creations-anew.com said...

Such Whimsy....This is my favorite item
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=22599899...I'm crazy about bags :)

Robin
CreationsANew Photography & Design

Green said...

Thanks for finding someone that will be able to use it.
I'm having a hard time deciding what to bid for on SITS...

Green said...

That would be an awesome idea! Thanks :)

said...

I love what you donated to the SITS auction!

Unknown said...

A Monster Ate My...Tote Bag. Perfect for the library!

Jaden Paige said...

My absolute favorite is the "A Monster Ate My Tote Bag"! SOOO CUTE! BUT, since you mentioned that one here, I am also going to tell you my other fave- the bright and sunny purse is great! Love it... her shop is fab!

Melissa said...

I LOVE the duck easter basket she made for my son! It was perfect!

Bethany said...

what adorable stuff!!!

Evolving Mommy Catherine said...

What a great shop. I think my favorite is the Child's Personalized Vintage Inspired Apron. Monkey would look adorable in it while cooking dinner's with me. Thanks for the chance!

Amy said...

I love the Small Jingly Monster Ball Baby Toy. Her descriptions are so witty and fun too. I love her entire shop, come to think of it!

Dawn Parsons Smith said...

Everything is so cute! I like the children's aprons and the dragon set!

Cookie Brochette said...

I just surfed in from SITS. What a great site, and great designs. That pig bag is adorable!

You are cordially invited to a tea party at ...Lightbulb Cuisine. Real food from an Easy Bake Oven.

Mommyof2girlz/StephD said...

Stopping by from SITS to say hi. The purses/totes are adorable. What a great giveaway! Have a fantastic weekend :)

Unknown said...

Oh I love everything but I do adore the Kids Piggy Basket Bag. And the personalized bags are great too!..

Karen ;)

Unknown said...

I tweeted !
http://twitter.com/kbknits/status/1555913226

Mimi said...

I might just have to go buy the Green and Pink (Love at First Sight) Personalized Purse. I really want a pig purse, but I fear that at 41 it may be frowned upon!

Mimi said...

Here's my Tweet!

http://twitter.com/Screaming_Mimi/status/1556913955

mub said...

The Luke the Lobster hat is fab!

Fiery said...

What amazing work. The personalized bags are all just so adorable. They would be perfect for my daughter with her unusual name. Though I must say she would go crazy over the adorable elephant bag being given away.

auntrene said...

OH, a favorite for me would be the personalized activity tote. How cute and how handy would this great tote be for the kiddos. I also love the personalized tool apron.

Carey-Life in the Carpool Lane said...

Wow! Her items are so beautiful and creative! I love the customized totes and the monster tote. I love the custom memory cards...what a great idea! I'm bookmarking her site...she'd be great for kids' birthday gifts.

Willo said...

I love the personalized family cards! How fun! I stopped by because you were ahead of me on SITS and I get in on all this fun! Score!

Amy said...

The personalized artist tote gift set is ADORABLE!

Love the piggy and elephant bags too! So cute!

Amy said...

I blogged about this giveaway here: http://atozgiveaways.blogspot.com/

Unknown said...

I love the Monster Ate My Tote bag! It's so cute and great for a little buy too =)

Fiery said...

I posted about this give away on my blog.


http://tocreatefire.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-mommyhoods-maggie-blue-designs.html



Extra Entry #1

Fiery said...

I posted about this give away on my blog.


http://tocreatefire.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-mommyhoods-maggie-blue-designs.html



Extra Entry #2

Fiery said...

I posted about this give away on my blog.


http://tocreatefire.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-mommyhoods-maggie-blue-designs.html



Extra Entry #3

Fiery said...

I posted about this give away on my blog.


http://tocreatefire.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-mommyhoods-maggie-blue-designs.html



Extra Entry #4

Fiery said...

I posted about this give away on my blog.


http://tocreatefire.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-mommyhoods-maggie-blue-designs.html



Extra Entry #5

Lisa@saltandlightstudio said...

Oooo I love her work too!

I think I need the Perky Pink Poppy bag, so freaking cute! Although I do adore the pig bag also.

Stopping by via SITS!

BlogBaby

Rachel Ann said...

I like the monkey growth chart and the personalized letter headbands...but if I won I think I might need to keep this cute elephant for myself!

Mammatalk said...

A monster ate my tote bag? Darling!!

Sandy said...

Oh the cuteness! I love the Personalized Kids Wooden Tools and Tool Belt Apron!

Crystal said...

Everything is adorable. One of my favorites is the Ava Purse that you can have personalized and pick the color combo. CUTE!

kimmymp said...

I LOVE the Monster ate my totebag! I adore the red one. They are the cutest!

MayRae said...

Love the Monster Ate My Tote and the Perky Pink Poppy Personalized Purse (wow... lotta P's!) What an awesome shop.

SeaBird said...

My boys would love the tool box!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21091109


Laura
SeaBirdChronicles.com

Lisa said...

I like the Personalized Kids Wooden Tools and Tool Belt Apron.
iluvchrisnlevi@aol.com

mousse said...

OOH! I adore the luke the lobster hat in your shop, and I will most definitly tweet!

mousse said...

Tweet!
http://twitter.com/chocolatmousse

rusted sun said...

I love the Custom Candid Memory Cards. I would love to have a custom card made for my twins first birthday party!

Sue said...

I love the A MONSTER ATE MY tote bag. So funny. Thanks for sharing~

Anonymous said...

I would have to say that the Elephant is my absolute favorite. But I also liked the Activity tote and the wooden tools and apron.
I hope I win this time!!! My son would love that elephant bag!!!!!

Marina =0)

Melanie @ Whimsical Creations said...

Love the Personalized Quilted Name Purse.

=) melanie
http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com
melanieadey at hotmail dot com

Melanie @ Whimsical Creations said...

Tweeted here #1
http://twitter.com/MelaniesCrafts/status/1585137497

=) melanie
http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com
melanieadey at hotmail dot com

Melanie @ Whimsical Creations said...

Tweeted here #2
http://twitter.com/MelaniesCrafts/status/1585137497

=) melanie
http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com
melanieadey at hotmail dot com

Melanie @ Whimsical Creations said...

Tweeted here #3
http://twitter.com/MelaniesCrafts/status/1585137497

=) melanie
http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com
melanieadey at hotmail dot com

Melanie @ Whimsical Creations said...

Tweeted here #4
http://twitter.com/MelaniesCrafts/status/1585137497

=) melanie
http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com
melanieadey at hotmail dot com

Melanie @ Whimsical Creations said...

Tweeted here #5
http://twitter.com/MelaniesCrafts/status/1585137497

=) melanie
http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com
melanieadey at hotmail dot com