How Handmade Sellers are Embracing Eco-friendly Products

     People are becoming more conscious of their impact on the environment. More people are striving toward a zero-waste lifestyle and handmade sellers are rising to the cause. It is easier for handmade sellers to reduce packaging waste and the use of plastic in packaging than it is for big retailers to do so. The big retailers have large quantities of products sitting on shelves and thousands of customers going through the store daily. They must have some way of ensuring consumers safety so having things like soap without a plastic wrap or a box leaves it open for contamination. This is where handmade sellers have an advantage. The majority of them run their business mostly online and do a few craft shows a year. This means they have more control over their product and less possibility of contamination. Let’s look at some eco-friendly handmade items you can start using to reduce your waste.

     Our first is handmade beeswax wraps. Christine Schmidt of Urban Evergreen has turned her love of fabric into helping with reduced waste. These food wraps can be used for anything you would use plastic wrap for with the exception of raw meats. They are washable in cold water, cling well, and so much prettier than plastic wrap. You can get colors that match your kitchen and seasonal as well.

She offers 3 set options: A Master Set of 6, a Starter Set of 4, and a Snack Pack of 5. 

Check out her Etsy store to learn more.

     Another item people are using to reduce waste is shampoo bars. Stephanie Timmerman of Kind Life Essentials. She has a love of all things natural and enjoys passing her passion on to her customers with quality natural and eco-friendly products. Her shampoo bars are made with all-natural ingredients that will help strengthen your hair and make it altogether healthier.

She offers other natural products as well.

Check out her Etsy store to learn more.

     Our last item is for our candle lovers out there. I make all-natural soy candles and melts. I use 100% soy wax, cotton wicks, and phthalate free fragrances or essential oils. Our candles are poured into mason jars that are recycled when possible and we offer a discount for recycling our jars for refilling. Our wax melts while currently in the plastic clamshells will be done without when the supply of containers I have is exhausted. Several of our home décor items are also made from recycled materials as well.

You can visit our Etsy store to learn more.

     If you are moving toward a more eco-friendly natural lifestyle consider searching Etsy for a handmade version first. Not only are you helping the environment by buying handmade you are also reducing manufacturing pollutants.  

Farmhouse Décor Trends

Living in the South I see more Southern Rustic and Farmhouse design trending this year. These trends are gaining popularity across the nation. People are falling in love with clean natural colors and the older vintage looking furniture pieces. It’s become “cool” to ditch dive for furniture that people have tossed out and given it a new life. Junkers everywhere are rejoicing at this new trend because it lends to their creative nature. The distressed paint look is the style of choice.

Picture from homishhome.com

Some of the other trending décor themes include galvanized steel trays and tubs as well as adding sheets of it to walls in the bathroom and kitchen. There has also been an uptrend in using these tubs for sink basins in the bathroom.

Photo from Facebook

Photo from Homeridian

Wooden quote signs are big for indoor and outdoor décor. This has handmade shops rising to the occasion to meet these décor needs with signs that have popular quotes and custom quotes for those that have their own style. 

Picture from Fisher Carlson on Etsy

Baskets have become the new storage trend for keeping a tidy home with style. 

Photo from Homeridian

Mason jars are the choice for vases, soap dispensers, tissue dispensers and more. They are also a trending style for wooden sign shapes.

Photo from Homeridian

The trend of farmhouse rustic is bringing the style and appreciation of older furniture and repurposed items back. This is great news for Junkers and handmade shops because we are all about repurposing what others view as trash.

How Buying Handmade Can Help the Economy

     

     Buying handmade means buying from a small business most likely a sole proprietor. The sole proprietor is often a stay at home mom (SAHM) or retired elderly. Both make their products out of love for the craft, but they also rely on selling them to supplement their household income. Your SAHM is trying her best to be able to raise her kids herself instead of relying on daycare or family to take care of them while she works. The benefits to this are a whole other blog post worth of information. She will often be up late to make sure an order goes out in time for a special occasion, she will bend over backward to get the details of a custom order down just right, and she will check up with her customer to make sure they are happy with their purchase. You just don’t get that kind of customer service from Big Box stores. The retired elderly are much the same when it comes to customer service and producing a quality item. The one thing they have in common is that they are both trying to supplement an income for their families. They are trying to make their lives a little better while doing something that helps make yours better too. The bonus is they get to do something they love to accomplish this.

     There are handmade businesses all over the world. Etsy is proof of this. They give handmade businesses a platform to sell on to reach a bigger customer base and providing you, the consumer, access to more handmade options and unique products from all over the world.

     Buying from a handmade business helps the economy by providing income to individuals like SAHM’s, retired elderly, and the disabled. This, in turn, helps them thrive, sometimes to the point of needing to hire help for their business, this, in turn, creates jobs.

     When you buy handmade you are buying a quality product that is made with love and integrity. You are also buying a product that is environmentally friendly by reducing the energy used to make the item and the toxic emissions that often come from factories.

     We here at JB Butterfly Designs do what we do because we love it. I (Juli) chose handmade because creating is a kind of therapy to me and it helps to supplement my income, but I also want to build something of value to pass on to the next generation. My children and my oldest granddaughter have had a part in helping me create. My granddaughter gets more joy out of helping create than she does playing video games or watching TV. I’m creating more than just a handmade product, I’m creating memories and teaching skills to my children and grandchildren.

     Dee Dee, my partner, chose handmade because it is therapy to her as well and being disabled but not qualifying for disability, this gives her a way of supplementing her husband’s income so that they can have a better life as well.

So next time you are looking for something special as a gift or something for a specific purpose try looking to handmade first. I am amazed daily by the variety of things I find in handmade that we use in our everyday lives. Handmade isn’t just about decorations and gifts anymore.

Spring has Sprung

     One of my favorite things about spring is witnessing the rebirth of all the great beauties of nature. Flowers would be some of my favorite. There’s nothing like the emergence of all those beautiful colors and enticing scents (my husband, Mr. Allergy, would say otherwise). Two of my favorite flowers are Irises and Lilacs. Obviously, the color Purple plays into this but I love the fragrance of Lilacs. This is the time of year that I break out all my floral fragrances for candles.

     I live in a wonderful lakeside community that is surrounded by nature and I love watching the progression of nature that’s all around me during the spring. The trees begin getting full of leaves and what was brown through the winter starts to turn green. I step out my door or take a walk by the lake and catch hints of honeysuckle and other flowers floating on the air. I spend more time by the lake fishing or just taking a stroll and enjoying the beautiful picture that nature is painting before my eyes.

     I hope that as the weather starts warming up that you will take the time to slow down and enjoy the beauty around you. I would love to see you share some photos on our Facebook page so we can enjoy the beauty of different areas around the world.

Doing Wax Warmers the Right Way

     How many of you use wax warmers? I bet quite a few of you do because it’s a better alternative to burning candles for some that may have small children and pets. There are a couple of options out there for warmer styles like tabletop ones and wall plug-ins. Whichever style you use there are pros and cons that come along with the use of these.

Wall Plug Warmer

Tabletop Warmer

     The pros are the long-lasting scent, no flame so no fire hazard, you don’t have to turn it off when the wax becomes liquid like you do when a candle has liquified, and it’s more cost effective than candles.

     The cons are it can still be knocked over creating a mess of wax, you must change the wax if you want a different scent, removing the wax can sometimes be a challenge.

     If you use a tabletop warmer make sure it is placed where kids and pets can’t knock it over easily or stick little fingers in the hot wax. If you use a plug-in unit, the same holds true as above. It can be a little more difficult to find an outlet that is out of reach of pets and children.

     Let’s talk about the removal of the wax. There are a few tricks that make this easier one is to use a silicone baking cup for cupcakes. Using this method lessens the need to wash your wax dish between waxes, allows for easy swapping of scents and the ability to save each one to swap it in again.

Another trick is to put a piece of ribbon in the dish with part of it hanging out of the wax. When the wax solidifies you just use the ribbon to lift it from the dish. This doesn’t always work with a clean sweep of it though as the wax is still soft enough it can come apart if it sticks in areas of the dish.

     This brings the third method into play. Put your wax dish in the freezer for about 5-10 minutes and your wax will pop right out.

     Now for those of you that have little rascals that are genius about getting into things and finding a way to reach that table when you’re not looking or for those of you that have cats that believe every surface in your home was meant for them to walk or lounge on I have created a solution. This idea came to me as I was looking at the candlestick wall sconces I have on my wall. I have created a hanging wax warmer that allows you to hang it out of reach of pets and children. 

     By hanging on the wall it also eliminates the likelihood of it getting bumped and spilling hot wax everywhere. I have two décor styles available right now but can do these with any style of wood and the possibilities for decorating them are endless as well. You can purchase these in my shop. I would be happy to take a custom order for designs as well.

     One last tip for your wax enjoyment. If your wax warmer has adjustable settings then use the lowest setting to make your wax last longer.

Where Has Family Time Gone?

     

     Gone are the days that we all look after each other. Gone are the days when neighbors helped each other. Gone are the days when the young help the old and gone are the days when the children help and take care of their parents. In 2014 there were 15,640 nursing homes in the US. I’m sure this number has increased as the rate of elderly people that can’t live alone has increase and the families that take care of them at home have decreased.

     The world is getting so crazy and busy that nobody has time for one another anymore. We spend our time raising our children and once they are grown and have their own busy lives we barely see them. Sometimes their paths take them far away from us and sometimes they stay relatively close. It’s sad that we’ve become a nation that is too busy for family anymore.

     I remember summer trips to visit my grandmother or trips to the family reunion. Now that she’s gone we haven’t had a family reunion or even had family get-togethers. The only time we all get together anymore is at funerals. Funerals shouldn’t be the only time family gets together. I miss spending time with my cousins and the rest of my crazy family. My father and my uncle used to end up being the entertainment with their crazy antics. I don’t know what was funnier, my Dad’s antics or my uncle laughing at them.

How many of you still have family reunions?

How Handmade Businesses Are the New Trend

The business of handmade has started trending as people are starting to look for more value and longevity in the products they purchase. They are beginning to appreciate being able to purchase unique items instead of the mass produced that everyone seems to have. Consumers like to know that they have made a difference in a person’s life and made an eco-friendly choice.

The ease of access to handmade goods brought by the online platforms has helped this trend as in the past people were limited to fairs and markets that were in limited areas to shop for handmade. With the rise in internet access learning about and finding handmade goods is even easier. The trend is boosted by the need for consumers to connect with the makers. They want an authentic experience that is more prevalent in the handmade industry with the ability to get to know the makers and to know the story behind the business and the products.

We have also noticed a trend in eco-friendly products and upcycled finds as people are starting to take note of their impact on the planet. There has been a rise in shampoo bars because of the natural ingredients and lack of plastic packaging. The same is true for bars of soap as handmade soap is free of the harmful chemicals and soapers have upped the ante by making some of the most beautiful soaps on the market.

Home décor has taken on the rustic look often created by upcycling old barn wood and wooden pallets and often old antique windows. Artisans have found ways to upcycle just about anything and turn it into something awesome and unique. It’s no wonder that the farmhouse and shabby chic is trending here in the South as it emphasizes the values of the Southern women of today and yesterday.

Everyone wants their house to look and smell amazing, but people are becoming more conscious of what they use in their home. This has led to a trend in a more natural way of delivering wonderful fragrances to your home. People are looking to essential oils for making their homes smell good as well as cleaning them. There has also been an uptrend in soy candles and melts due to the cleaner burning. All-natural fabric sprays are replacing the popular brand sprays in an effort to reduce or eliminate toxic chemicals being used in our homes.

The bottom line is handmade products are experiencing a boost with the increased access from e-commerce sites that give artisans a platform, blogs that promote makers and handmade businesses and social media that makes it easy for handmade artists to connect with consumers. Another thing that has given a boost in handmade business is the ability to customize and personalize gifts.