More clearance items in the shop...

I'm seriously getting down to tidying and reorganising my craft space this week and came across a stash of these moo business card-sized envelopes that I made quite a while ago.  In the interest of making way for new stock, I'm discontinuing them at a one time special price over at my etsy store.

The print is so lovely and bright for spring - they are also ideal for a neatly folded note (the written or money kind) as an Easter gift if (like me) you're not that keen on chocolate!

They're all here!

At last, you can find an updated selection of the Answers on a Postcard series in my Etsy shop. If you'd like to catch up with more than one at once, you can buy yourself a Girl Industries instant zine collection.

Issue 8 is conspicuous in its absence for the time being, I still need to get myself down to the printers to pick up some copies, all in colour!

More exciting zine-related news to come very soon!

Some live photos from Vertiline in Love

I am watching the drama unfold live on Twitter... Claira from Vertiline in Love is unpacking her order of Girl Industries goodies! Follow Claira at @vertilineinlove for all the latest.








The more I see it, the more I like the new packaging I designed for use in shops. I can feel a whole rebrand coming on with these new lighter colours.

Find me in Sheffield!

I'm returning to my Northern English roots... sort of! The wonderful boutique Vertiline in Love has relocated from Edinburgh to Sheffield. I've been busy putting together a few boxes of new stock for this gorgeous little shop and here are some of the things I've been working on...

New tags... exclusive to Vertiline in this rich green colourway!

New packaging... especially for bricks and mortar retailers so they can price it up in house - and no web address on the packaging, just my business name.

If you are anywhere near Sheffield, or visiting Yorkshire in the next wee while, I can definitely encourage a visit to Vertiline in the Nichols Building. Otherwise, Vertiline will be open for business online shortly!

Treasury feature: slick pink

Another treasury, this time featuring the LAST EVER set of oversized grey and pink heart coasters. If you've had your eye on these, snap them up now, as I just sold a set earlier this week and these are the very last ones.

Treasury feature: strings

I've been lucky to find girlindustries items in a few treasuries this week - thank you to everyone who comments on and browses these lists, and a huge thank you to the lovely people who compile them.

Teeny tiny shiny envelopes

Aren't these tiny sparkly glittery envelopes cute? They're just 3cm square! They come with their own matching white folding cards, that you can customise to your heart's content. I am sure you can do a far better job than my sad attempt!


Find them in my shop and snap them up before they're gone, as they are upcycled from one piece of sturdy gift wrap there are only 16 of the little blighters in the whole wide world...

Wallpaper envelopes - new!

I decided it was time for a bit of a shake-up in the wallpaper envelope department and have added a new size to my repertoire!

They are available in 12 different pattern/colourways (all from Laura Ashley's wonderful range) and all bin end samples, otherwise destined for the recycling.

My big task for naptimes this week is to upload all 12 varieties to my upcycled envelopes section in the shop, but in the meantime, here's a snapshot of the whole range.



I'm ready for custom orders and each colourway should yield around 50 envelopes, so they're ideal for your larger projects. I even have co-ordinating offcuts available that I'd be happy to send free of charge if someone creative fancied teaming them up with their own handmade cards.

With smaller offcuts, I've started making up co-ordinating envelope seals, but they are a little further off making their debut in the shop just yet. I love this time of year, it's the traditional stationery purchase month!

Wedding season

As summer is well and truly underway in this part of the world (not that you'd know from the photo above, taken in my very sunny craft room), I've been inspired to update my confetti packaging. And in turn, this confetti update has inspired how I package and send all of my goodies!

Of course, the beauty of this is that I can update the labels with whatever text you like - the names and wedding date of the lucky couple in the case of confetti, or a message for the recipient if you're buying a set of notecards for a gift. I can even switch up the twine colours to match what's hiding inside.

Now my confetti looks much more appealing, I'll be showing you a lot more of it in my shop. I have to admit getting a bit carried away with the punches when I wasn't very mobile last year, but didn't have the concentration to knit or sew. I love the idea of having the confetti I made from a damaged French romance novel at a wedding, so much fun to pick the pieces off each other and have a nosy at the words! I love that soupir is hiding in there - ahhhhh!

New in the shop!

These gorgeous little envelopes and matching embellished flat cards are available in the girlindustries etsy shop right now! At $4 for a set of 5, they come in at a dinky 7 x 11cm, or 4 1/4 x 2 7/8 inches.

Upcycled from a day to a page calendar, each set of five notecards includes a variety of cats and background colours in each set.

Buttons galore!

I've just done a big button update in the shop, but there are plenty more where these came from. There is something lovely about sorting through my big bag of buttons (you can get your own over at askingfortrouble) and carding them up. I hope you find something amongst them that is just perfect for a lovely project - much better than having them languishing in a bag in my sewing chest.

Coming soon... buttons!

The crafty destash continues... look out for a whole new section of reclaimed and vintage buttons in the girlindustries etsy shop soon.

Craft destash!

I'm starting an uber-clearout in the countdown to returning to work. First up, on eBay, is a huge chunk of my collection of knitting and papercraft magazines, finishing in fits and starts ('cos that's how I list 'em) over the next 10 days. Just look me up, I'm called Kippersmum - my ginger cat is called Kipper and I thought I would be a memorable name!

I was given a huge partworks collection of crochet and knitting patterns from 1989/90/91 called Creative Needles and I'm selling it off as a 10-pattern lucky dip via my Etsy shop. Coming to both eBay and Etsy will be button packs, trims and ribbons, surplus fabric and more bits and bobs over the next few weeks as I get my craft room organised before I go back to my day job. 11 weeks and counting!

I've also rejigged my craft paper destash item and have 12 sets packaged up and ready to go. Now with 50 different paper ephemera pieces which all fit into a lovely repurposed A5 box for you to keep nice and safe once they arrive instead of loose in a folder or envelope. The collection now includes spare 5 x 7 inch photographs from my travels around the world, including this sepia-tinted shot of the Bethesda Fountain in New York's Central Park, where I used to spend many a happy lunch hour back in the day.

Let my loss be your gain, and stock up on craft goodies while they're at a bargain price. Buy three or more items and I'll refund your postage (UK or international) via PayPal if you mention 'blog' in your notes to seller or a convo before 17 May 2011.

New banner!

So I obtained myself a new banner for my etsy shop and thought you'd like to hear the story behind it. Like most things I seem to buy these days I heard about it first on Twitter. An art student called Mia made it for me, she is charging a dollar a word to write anything within reason in chalk on the pavement. Just click here if you'd like something of your very own. All proceeds go towards paying off her student loans and having finally cleared my (twelve year old) student debt a couple of months ago, I am all for helping someone else on her way to early repayment.

Mia also sells her art through this page on her website. I love her style and there are lots of purposeful and beautiful things to pick from. I particularly like her handmade yet practical playing cards set. Gorgeous!

I'm very tempted to get another message for a very unique birthday greeting for my husband next month, or my little girl's name to frame and put on her bedroom door. Oh the possibilities!

Break out the bunting, I'm unstoppable!

I'm really ploughing through a whole lot of unfinished projects at the moment, and feeling pretty chuffed with myself. I've updated the shop with three new products this week, and the latest is timed to tie in with Royal Wedding Fever!

For years I've been putting little hearts in my knitting as a little kind of 'trademark', especially when I was making hats for Innocent's big knit. And of course there's almost a whole section of my etsy shop dedicated to confetti hearts. I've wanted to make miniature bunting for ooh, ages, and with my recent wedding-related cross-stitching project, all these ideas collided in a big flash of inspiration and here's the result:

I wish I was back at my day job at the moment so I could pop a string of this bunting on my desk in time for Friday. However, I am also aware of the fact that I would have to be doing work if I were sitting at my desk, so I'm kind of glad I don't have to be back for another three months!

Of course, this bunting is endlessly customisable, in different colours and even with letters spelling out 'bride', 'groom', 'wedding', the date of the wedding or the names of the happy couple. Or all of these things! Each square is 2cm by 2cm, uses dmc threads and the aida is backed with a layer of fluffy felt, to keep it in good shape. Luckily my stitching is pretty neat, even on the back, but I felt (ahem!) that the layer of felt just finished it off nicely.

Head over the shop now to pick some up - if you're in the UK, I'll even rush it out to you in time for Friday!

Upgrade your envelopes

New in my shop is an envelope upgrade, big 5 inch (12.5cm) square envelopes with co-ordinating flat cards. Each new set will be added individually because my cardstock is all rescued from fellow crafters overstock via Etsy's much-missed Alchemy feature. Making these sets extremely limited edition because I don't know when I can get more... Each set costs $10 and is available by clicking here. They're particularly handy as wedding thank yous, you can even pop a CD of your photos in with your thank you note, it fits perfectly!

I've been playing around with stamping up offcuts, for thank you notes and enclosures with orders. This makes me wonder whether I should add some co-ordinating designs onto one side of the flat cards, or if part of their appeal is their simplicity. Any thoughts welcomed on that front!

In the meantime, here is a suggestion for co-ordinating stationery to complement my envelopes from a fellow Etsy seller...

Letterpress key notes by Dempsey Press

or how about some lovely handmade paper - this stuff is so smooth you can even run it through your printer!

Handmade notepaper by White Dragon Paper

p.s. I had intended to include a whole selection of different notepapers but I am sensing a serious gap in the market here.

Back in Business

Wow, where did that month go? I've been busy getting my flat in Glasgow ready to go on the market, and of course, most days are taken up with counting blocks, supervising the jumperoo and ensuring that all the scissors are out of reach. Why does crafting have to involve so many pointy and/or sharp implements?

But I recently made my first sale on Etsy in ages, so that means I'm very much back on track to start making and participating in all things crafty once again. At the moment everything in the shop is in stock and ready to ship, because I've been working on a huge custom order for my good friend Julie, who is getting married in just a few weeks.

Next on the slate is to finally finish off the series of craft zines that I've been working on for ooh, nearly two years now. If I've asked you for answers and you haven't had time to get back to me yet, now is the time to do it! I'm hoping to pull all the remaining issues together between now and the end of May, so I would love your input. If you haven't taken part and want a questions list, hit me up at katy girlindustries.com right now and get involved. There's room for everyone!

Happy New Year!

Aaargh, we've had no internet for the past week and I'm itching to get my shop back up and running. So here it is, with a soft relaunch, and more new ideas and a big sale to come once I have a little time to get organised.

Happy twenty eleven!

Most Haunted

So here in detail are some of the products I've splurged on over the last couple of years at Haunt. I was introduced to Haunt when Erin was Etsy's featured seller for a weekend. Being a bit of a fan of seller interviews anyway (have I mentioned my Answers on a Postcard zine...?), I'm always a bit of a sucker for the products associated with the featured seller interview, especially when Etsy focuses on established rather than new sellers.

It seems as though Erin's friendly and down to earth interview chimed with many Etsy shoppers, not to mention her beautifully presented products with intriguing descriptions, and sales went through the roof. Literally. In the space of a weekend, Erin made something like 3000 sales. This is not an exaggeration. Enhancing the luxury problem at hand, I joined in and made my first purchase - it was a biggie! In late 2008, I decided to stock up the hunting lodge I had rented for my hen weekend with Haunt products. With 3 bathrooms and 12 guests, I splurged on 3 soaps (Raspberry Honey, Corsair and Pan), 3 sugar scrubs (Mintleaf & mocha, Spiceberry and Marzipan & Shortbread) and 3 glossing oil sprays (Bourbon Vanilla, Empire and Orange Blossom) - I also asked Erin for sample sizes of 12 different soaps for my friends' goodie bags - these included Bittersweet, Pumpkin Lavender and Turkish Cocoa.

I like to break down the three different types of scent that Haunt produces into three categories, Fruit-y, Cake-y and Haunt-y. The fruity scents, like Orange Blossom, The Old Cider Mill and Spiceberry are clean yet warm fragrances, with a zesty but warm feel. The cakey type ones you feel like you could eat then and there in the shower, especially the ones with a pumpkin flavour to them. I like to keep a tupperware with a bar of Pumpkin Lavender soap in my overnight bag for work trips, as it's such a warm, comforting and homely scent. I am also very impressed with the Coffee Fiend flavour haunt scrub I have on the go at the moment, it's the next best thing to having an actual coffee in there to help me wake up.

The fragrances that I'd describe as Haunty like Corsair, Pan and the newer Burying Tree and Witch-Wife are a really unusual blend of botanicals that are somewhat indescribeable - in a good way! They're so different to anything else I've used in the past, and can sometimes take a little getting used to. For ages I really wasn't sure about the sample of Sword and Lion as a fragrance, but now I'm tempted to buy some glossing oil in this scent if it's available in the next Haunt sale.

Now I realise I've spent a lot of time talking about fragrances and how good these products smell and make you feel, but I've said nothing about how well they treat your skin! The soaps are amazing, they are lovely and chunky and wash down nicely, holding their shape and never cracking or drying out. And of course they do the same to your skin, most of the time I don't need to moisturise after using them. The sugar scrubs are a revelation, I'd never tried one before and the mix of sugar with natural oils does wonders for any rough patches you might have - and with the weather we're having in Scotland at the moment (-19 C yesterday at my house!), they are sooo handy. I don't tend to use moisturiser as it just sits on my skin and takes up time I don't have in the mornings, but the dry oil sprays sink straight in, soften my skin without making it feel greasy (unlike moisturising lotions). I don't use lip balms but have bought Haunt Lust lip balms in the past for friends and my husband, who suffers from dry lips and has found it works better than reliable high street names. There are more new products in the latest Haunt line which I can't wait to try out, if they're anywhere near as good as my old favourites!

Speaking of which, the next Haunt sale starts this evening! Previews of new products in brand new packaging will be up on the new Big Cartel Haunt shop from 9pm UK time, and the shop will open at 2am our time. It's your perfect opportunity to pick up a little present for yourself, or to add to your Christmas gifts. If you're catching up with me later and you've missed out this time, hop over to Erin's blog to find out about future sales. They are few and far between, and I promise you, all the fuss is worth it!

Shop update

Hello friends! I'm starting to realise there's a bit more to this having a baby malarky than watching her sleep peacefully while I crack on with a lovely bit of knitting.



In light of this, I'm going to extend the shop hiatus until the New Year, and see how we're doing then. As you can see from my lack of blog posts, and even the tweeting has slowed right down, it's taking. a while for me to adjust and to get into any kind of routine.



So while I'm here, I thought you'd like to know about a new Folksy shop, Creative Planet. My schoolfriend, Sue, has set this up following the recent birth of her little girl, with the aim of bringing beautiful but affordable handmade jewellery to everyone. And of course, Sue is now my crafting inspiration, as she is up and running just a few months after her baby arrived!






I've particularly got my eye on this Red Coral stretch bracelet for the Christmas party season - but Sue is in the process of adding more stock to her folksy shop all the time, so stop by for a look soon.

I'm hoping to be back in a week or so to share photos of the beautiful handmade gifts and cards we've received in the last couple of months.