The Experiment is Over!

Okay, so technically, it's been over for a couple weeks now, but I only just got around to listing it at the shop this week. In any case, my beloved Mod Podge covered Aleene's just fine. No more weird feeling! A little red suede paper, and it was good to go. Check it out:



All things considered, it turned out pretty well. The interior's lined in red suede, and due to Mod Podge's tendency of sticking to itself, I decided to only coat the exterior. The last thing I want is a box that seals itself shut in high humidity. It'll make a nice box for someone out there. ^_^

Memory Boxes

This week, I've been entertaining an 11-year-old cousin of mine, and one thing I decided to do was have her make a memory box. A memory box is that place where you stick all those little trinkets and such that holds a pleasant memory for you. They can be anything, really - things friends gave you, very special photos, concert tickets, even rocks from special places. They might look like junk to anyone else, but all those little objects can trigger a great memory for you.

When I was in third grade, I started my own memory box. Of course, back then, I didn't have any idea about decoupage or that you could buy unfinished boxes - I just grabbed an old leatherish mini-suitcase-type box and plastered it with stickers, then started sticking little trinkets in it. There's a nice variety of stuff in there, from a seashell a friend decorated for me to concert tickets to my favorite band to my high school graduation tassel. Good times.

These days, of course, we have our local Hobby Lobby, so I figured my cousin could make her own box. Before we left, I asked her to write down her three favorite colors. Then, once we got to the paper aisle, she picked out three different patterns of paper, keeping her favorite colors in mind. Then, it was on to the sticker aisle. Pick up a little ribbon for the border around the lid, and we were all set.

Depending on how old your little crafter is, you'll have to do all the cutting, but they can do a lot of things. Have them pick out which paper they want where (one for the base, one for the lid, and if you're really ambitious, one for inside lining) and choose a color from those papers to paint the box. For example, my cousin picked a blue paper for the bottom and a pink, green, and magenta paper for the top. Therefore, while I was cutting the paper for her, she painted the base of her box blue and the top magenta. That way, if there were any gaps when she pasted the paper on, it wouldn't be as noticeable.

Once the paint dried, it was on to the decoupage part! At eleven years old, she was perfectly capable of gluing the paper on herself, and it lets her feel accomplished. After that dried, it was on to the stickers. This is where she really seemed to have fun - just let her loose and put whatever stickers she wants wherever, and she'll be happy. Let your crafter add whatever embellishments you picked up at the craft store, and you're done with the box.

It's a nice project for a rainy summer day or two, and with any luck, it'll be something your crafter will be able to enjoy even years later.

The Experiment Goes On

Well. It's been nearly a month since I gave Aleene's a try... and would you believe it is STILL tacky? I have an entire new box done in Mod Podge about two weeks ago, and it was all set to go within five days. Yeah, no more Aleene's for me.

So... what to do with the box...

For starters, I'm going to put a coat of ModPodge over it. Assuming that doesn't result in spontaneous combustion or something similar, I'll line the inside with red suede paper and put it up in the shop. If I can't fix it, I'll just hang on to it. It's a picture of my cat, after all. ^_^

Experiment Update

Well, it's been about a week since I decided to give Aleene's a try, and I have to say... I think my first impressions were right. While I can't really complain about the glossy sheen (that IS what "gloss" is supposed to give you), the feel is a different matter, and when you feel like you need to wash your hands after holding a box... well, that's a problem.

So, the question now is, "What do I do now?"

I do actually like the box. I mean, c'mon, it's got my cat on it, and while he is an ill-tempered lil' beast, he is a pretty kitty. Besides, who wants to waste a perfectly good wooden box?

I think I'll try one more experiment. I'm going to add a coat of Mod Podge and see what that does. At the very least, it should take care of the texture problem. There is the possibility that the two won't work well together, but hey, that's why it's an experiment!

Experiments in Decoupage

There are a lot of decoupage mediums out there, from simple watered-down Elmer's Glue to the more pricey Royal Coat. My decoupage medium of choice is Mod Podge. It comes in a lot of varieties, spreads easily, dries quickly but not too quickly, and can be built up into a nice protective coat. But, there are other options out there, and in the interest of broadening my horizons and exploring beyond my Mod Podge world, I decided to give this a try:

It was $4.99, which is cheap enough to give it a try... and I did just that last night. And I have to say, I'm not sure what to make of it. I got the gloss formula, which is the only one the craft store was carrying at the time, then found myself a small box I wouldn't mind experimenting on, painted it black with silver accents, printed out an image, and gave it a go.

The first thing I noticed about Aleene's Instant Decoupage was the consistency... which is roughly about the same as one of the more undesirable symptoms of a cold. It didn't spread terribly well, and seemed to have a bluish tint to it. Not good signs.

Even worse was how badly the paper bubbled under it. Now, you're going to get bubbling with just about any medium you use, but some bubble worse than others, and this was definitely worse than Mod Podge. The directions state that you should wet your fingers in water and smooth the bubbles out, which may work great with, say, magazine images, but I work with images straight from the good old home printer. When you add straight water to that, the colors tend to bleed. At the very least, they're going to smudge as you rub those bubbles out. Again, not a good thing.

Finally, there's the dry time. Mod Podge has a dry time of 15 minutes to half an hour, depending on weather conditions and assuming you didn't pour it on. As of right now, a good fifteen hours later, I'm still not sure it's entirely dry. I know it's supposed to be Gloss, which means a nice shine, but...

That's almost a WET shine. Which is not always a bad thing - in fact, it can be desirable to have that polished sheen to a piece of wood. The problem here is that I'm not sure how much of it is the intended look of it and how much is because it's actually not DRY yet. It's got an almost damp feel to it, along with the feel of wood that's just been oiled. If it hasn't fully dried yet... well, definite strike against it in my book.

I'll give it a few more days and see if it is a curing problem after all, but so far, I am not impressed. I'll probably end up coating it in Mod Podge anyways.

As for the box itself, here's a better look at it:

I think, if I can work out the sealer problem, that I'll finish it off with a lovely red suede paper interior and put it up for about $10 in our shop. We'll see how the Aleene issues go, though.

We Have a Lens!

There is one downside to Etsy: it is huge. I mean frickin' enormous. It's not too bad for me - there aren't as many decoupaged boxes out there as there is jewelry. Poor G. puts a necklace up, and within hours, it's five pages back in the search, never mind where it is after a few days.

Of course, I hear the key to successful internet selling is marketing. To really sell stuff and be successful, you have to get out there and advertise. Hand out business cards, tell people about your work, drive traffic directly to your shop rather than relying on the marketplace to do it for you. This blog is one step towards building public relations and grabbing some interested folk.

Another is building a Squidoo lens.

What is a Squidoo lens, you ask? Squidoo is a free online community that allows members to build a one-page website (called a lens) on any topic they want and potentially make a little pocket change while doing it. You can also make as many lenses as you want - just remember that quality is way better than quantity. Plus, they're a great way to draw attention to the things you love.

I'm a minor Squidoo addict. It's kind of a hobby of mine. I've got lenses on Greek mythology, Mackinac Island, fantasy fiction, and my cat, just to name a few. So it's only natural that I decided to make a lens devoted to our beloved Willheit Shoppes. Not only will it hopefully get Willheit a little more exposure, but it's a nice way to put all the neat little tidbits that don't fit anywhere else in one place and still link back to the shop.

Eventually, I plan on getting a list of cool Etsy shops up there, not to mention a link back to this blog here, but that gives me something to add in future updates. In any case, check out the new lens!

And if Squidoo lens-crafting seems like something you'd like to do, then create your own lens now!

New Banner for the Shop

I've been browsing Etsy the past few days, and I noticed something: the banners make a difference. Sure, they say beauty's only skin deep, but a little effort towards a shop's appearance goes a long way. I know, I know, a pretty shiny banner doesn't mean quality goods, but it says something about the shop owners. It says they actually care what their shop looks like and are willing to put their time and effort into even the little details.

After this revelation, I took a good look at Willheit's banner and tried to see what it said about us.

It said, "Hi! I know how to used the paint can and text tool in Photoshop and took all of five minutes!"

Oi. Not exactly the introduction we want to our potential customers. This needed to be fixed.

Now, I am not naturally inclined as a graphic designer. In fact, I'm pretty much the opposite. Took a class in high school and swiftly decided it was not my forte. Unfortunately, other people aren't going to care when all they see is a rather sad little banner. This... called for some research.

As luck would have it, there are some incredibly gifted artists and designers on Etsy, and their talents extend to banners. After a few hours of cruising through shops and checking out what kind of banners looked good, which didn't look so good, and which made me go, "Wow, this person's really a professional!", I got some pretty good ideas and came up with our brand new banner.

I think it looks pretty nice. Check it and our newest stock out over at Willheit Shoppes.