Try Handmade

Shopping blog featuring products made by people not factories.

Bringing the Outdoors In!

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Is there a home decor or design trend that you find yourself constantly drawn to? For me there are a handful of trends that I love, but personally I haven’t been able to commit to just one – as a result, some rooms of our home still look a bit bare!

This is the first in a series of posts where I’ll share some of the trends I’ve noticed over the last few years and I’ll find some great handmade items to go with each.

The first trend – is one that’s seen no shortage of coverage throughout the blogosphere, and is probably one of my favorites. Bringing the outdoors inside!

One great place to start with this trend – terrariums and planters. I’m pretty smitten with the Lala Terrariums shop (above), such a great selection to be found here!

And these hanging airpods from Mudpuppy – how eye catching are these?

I like the sleek look of Bole Werc Picollo’s products!

For bird lovers – how about these decoupaged boxes from The Specimen Box Shop? Gorgeous!

Because I am so enamoured with this trend, I could go on and on. I wouldn’t be surprised if we decide that our living room is in need of a terrarium or one of the pieces above sometime soon! How about you – is this a trend that appeals to you, and has already found its way in to your home? Or are there other trends or types of items you gravitate towards? I’d love to hear about that, or any of your recent home decor finds in the comments!

Product Showcase: Baby’s Here!

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Lately it seems like all my friends are announcing that they’re expecting! I suppose it’s inevitable at my age but since I still feel about 16 I’m surprised every time. I love to knit and crochet baby items as they’re super fast and easy to whip up. When I don’t have time to make something, I look for a unique gift that someone else has made instead.

This product showcase is a roundup of my latest favorite handmade baby items.

The gorgeous card above is from Storeyshop and was created when the designer’s friends started having babies. Helen wanted to design some cards with nontraditional messages as an alternative to the usual ‘New Baby Girl’ messages. I think it turned out wonderfully!

nellsmith’s adorable baby T-shirt would make a great gift for new parents. Nell’s work is inspired by retro design and toys, Japanese cartoons, and all things cute. She loves using bright, bold colors in her work to try to keep it as fresh and modern as possible.

This baby vest from FruteJuce is a must-have for any trendy baby. Alison designs nontraditional baby clothes inspired by the adult world. The inspiration for the cassette, record deck and headphones vests comes from her family’s strong relationship with music and will start any future musician off the right way.

Any modern baby needs a cool hat and this skull-and-crossbones beanie from MaisieLiddel fits the bill. Handknitted in a punk-inspired pink and white, this little gem is made from a luxurious blend of merino, silk and cashmere.

Keep baby warm with bettyandtodd2’s pretty stroller blanket. Debbie’s mum has always loved hedgehogs and when she and her brothers were growing up, her mum received many different types of hedgehogs as presents. Hedgehogs are a real part of English wildlife so Debbie created this colorful blanket in a small size to easily fit a stroller or car seat.

The inspiration for Quite Contrary Crafts’ card came while Mary was on her stall at Greenwich Market in London, when a customer asked whether there was a New Baby card available. She hadn’t – but she brainstormed new card ideas while her toes were getting rather chilly at the quiet market. Mary had always thought that Silver Cross Prams were very elegant and loves the curl in the handle of the pram in this design. Simple yet effective and elegant.

This gorgeous baby sweater from IrishWoolen was inspired by traditional Irish Aran knitting techniques. The sweater vest was custom-designed for a friend of the designers. The stitch in the center of the jumper is symbolic of the hard working bee and is a traditional stitch of the Aran style of knitting the Aran style. The light flecked wool used is a modern alternative to traditional Aran wool. It’s a great take on the original fisherman’s jumper which was a traditional and staple uniform for so many working men in the past.

I’m thrilled to see how much adorable and unique handmade clothing is available for babies. Despite not having children of her own (yet!), Jane of thedoghouse printed this onesie with an image of her greyhound, Max and the caption ‘doggy’ because she thought that is she did have a baby, this would look so adorable on them!

Brighten up any nursery with this hand-embroidered hanging heart from elissahill. Baby will adore the pretty colours, and even better the heart can be embroidered with any message and picture you desire.

I’d love to discover more handmade baby items, post yours below!

Shop Local in Ireland

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Even though St. Patrick’s Day has come and gone, I wanted to make up for the fact that I completely forgot about it this year. It’s probably because for the the first time we celebrated two birthdays within a two week period of time at our house–my daughter turned 3 and my son turned 1. So the end of February until well into March was a bit of a whirlwind. It wasn’t hard to find really great items in Ireland, I actually had a really hard time choosing just three to show you.

Truth be told, I’ve been coveting Bonzie’s fashion designs for several years now. Her romantic, Victorian style has a modern edge that makes everything she designs totally wearable yet totally unique as well. The shop is run by Bonzie and her Auntie Ger out of her studio in Waterford, Ireland. isn’t that just the perfect dream of running your own business, being able to work with your own family?

Embellishments…now there’s a word only people who handcraft know and understand. I have many embellishments that are so precious to me I don’t use them when I probably should! Geraldine of LittleSnippets has been embroidering since she was 4 years old. She was taught and encouraged by her aunt Maureen Ryan. I never even thought about making my own little embellishments like these celtic birds, but what a great way to make use of leftover material, thread, buttons, etc.

This piece of wearable art is the creation of Artist Lisa Falzon of Malta, but who is now living in rural Ireland. You will find more wonderful art in her shop Meluseena, which is taken from the name “Melusine” who is the heroine of a French fairy tale. Each piece of art in her shop is amazing, and her technique involves collage, painting, and other techniques to achieve the dreamy, beautiful images. She says that selling her art online is much more gratifying than working through a gallery or an art agent. It’s just stunning how much talent one can find by just poking around a bit.

I just had to post a second illustration, this is Snow White and Rose Red two sisters from the Brothers Grimm. I always say my little girl looks like Rose Red, and most people don’t know what I’m talking about. This illustration is a perfect gift for my daughter, I can save it and give it to her next year for her birthday–I’m sure it will be here before I know it!

New York Marathon: Running Fashion

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My friend from college is running in the New York Marathon this upcoming weekend and I couldn’t be more excited for her. She’s been training for months and I can only imagine the overwhelming sense of accomplishment she’ll feel when she finally crosses the finish line, not to mention the excitement of being around so many other runners. My longest race so far has only been 10 miles, but I felt great at the end of it and hope to one day run a marathon as well, just to prove to myself that I can.

This graphic cutoff sweatshirt by Firedaughter Clothing would be a great motivator during months of training and early morning runs or a great gift for someone’s who’s completed a marathon. With bold colors and large, graphic letters screen printed onto eco-fleece, this isn’t your typical sweatshirt. Can you think of anything else so comfortable and stylish?

When you’re training for a marathon, you spend so much time running that it can feel as if you’re living in your workout clothes. After all of your hard work, the last thing you want is to feel frumpy. This tie dye t-shirt by Tie Mee is the perfect solution for runners looking to be a bit more stylish. The horizontal dye pattern is a great twist on the typical circle tie dye, and the cotton and spandex blend is sure to stay in place during your workouts.

A great pair of running pants or shorts can be key to a comfortable run. These 7/8ths foldover workout pants by Cast Couture are perfect for jogging, yet stylish enough to be worn to the grocery store. Buyers can choose between six colors and the pants can be custom sized according to specific body measurements.

I wish I could be there to cheer my friend on over the weekend. Maybe someday we’ll be able to run one together, but for now, I’m happy to start with a half marathon and work my way up.

**The linocut print featured at the top of this post was created by AnnikaLane.