Tuesday, July 13, 2010

A Giveaway!

I have had some extremely unusual luck lately with online giveaways. Karma tells me that I should pass that on. I wanted to needle felt something special to giveaway, but that would take me too long right now (though it will happen in the future). So I've fallen back on a past trade.



Once upon a time I called myself a bookbinder. It was something I picked up on a whim to make a gift for someone. The binding bug struck and I couldn't stop. The walk-in closet of our teeny one-bedroom apartment was becoming overrun with handmade books. The solution came in the suggestions of friends - sell them! So I set up an Etsy shop, my own website, and hooked up with a local artist's market.



To say that my business bombed wouldn't be fair. It would be close to accurate, though. I never made enough money to justify the costs of art shows and seller's fees (not to speak of time and supplies). People wanted my work for mere pennies and I tired of hearing people exclaim "I could buy a notebook at Wal-Mart for a third of this price!" It became stress and work. It was no longer fun or rewarding. So I stopped making and selling books.

After the birth of my second child I no longer even felt bad about having abandoned bookbinding. It was fun, but it passed and I moved on. Instead I started playing with fabric - making toys for my kids, blankets for my family, bags for my husband. Creating was fun again - because I was doing it for all the right reasons.

Years later, I've had my third child and have moved on to an obsession with wool. However, I still have a closet shelf full of handmade books that I couldn't part with (the ones I could part with were gifted - mostly to the Elf for drawing purposes).



The book in this post is one of my favorites. I love the look, the heft, the sparkle of the endpapers (those are the decorative pieces on the inside covers). What better item to offer in a giveaway than one that I hold dear? So here it is! I offer this book to one randomly chosen person. I'll ship it anywhere (with a properly given address), so don't be shy. Leave a comment - any comment (just one, though, please). Tell me the weather, what I should needle felt next, your favorite time of day, just say hi! Any comment gets you entered. If you care to share this giveaway with others, feel free to post about it and leave another comment with a link - it'll get you another entry!

I'll write everyone's names down on slips of paper and have the little monsters pick one on July 25th with the winner announced on Monday the 26th. Make sure I have some way of contacting you (email left in the comments or enabled on your profile).

Have I forgotten anything? I'm having the hardest time waking up today.

11 comments:

  1. oooh, that is beautiful! i LOVE handmade books. thanks for hosting the giveaway!

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  2. What a lovely giveaway! I'm so sorry you had such a negative experience selling your wares. Anyway, I nominated you for an award on my blog, since you are a new found friend. I hope you will hop on over and check it out.

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  3. Hi, I Love LOVE handmade books! They are so much better for writing special ideas in for the boys.
    Well, that's what I would do with it if I won.
    Thanks for the chance...ps the weather here is raining and I think you should needlefelt anything gnome related, and my favourite time is nap time! xx

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  4. What a cool book, I love handmade, cheers Marie

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  5. How about a needle felted fire breathing dragon ~ with a knight to match

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  6. Nice Blog! I love hand-bound books! Several years ago, one of my bridesmaids at my wedding gave me a hand-bound book with a hand-painted cover. I still treasure it. I found your blog from Kim's Blog, Green Momma. I just started up a new blog today, it's been awhile. :)

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  7. What a beautiful book! I love handmade, much better than walmart. Thanks for the chance.

    Blessings, Elizabeth

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  8. That is a beautiful book! The weather can't make up its mind, but it is sunny at the minute, needlefelt toadstools and favourite time is bedtime, with dinner time a close second :D

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  9. love the book. I too am hooked on felting. I think it's time to make something else. thanks for the inspiration! and thanks for sharing

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  10. Oh...now that is one magical journalling book!!! I'd take that any day over a $3 journal from Walmart!!
    Please consider me in for the giveaway!!!
    xox maureen

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