Merci Maman

Hi everyone! :)

Mother's day is just around the corner! And I'm sure many of you were reminded of the holiday with this publicity running around the internet about World's Toughest Job - Director of Operations. It's a great ad for Mothers Day and I think it depicts very well the fact that Mom's think about everyone in the family before themselves. So my recommendations for this Mothers Day is : Pamper her! : )

Why not call her favourite aesthetician and book her a surprise appointment? If you want her to try something new (or you have no idea if she has a favourite aesthetician), why not try the Zorah biospa? There are many addresses trhoughout Quebec and more. Zorah is a company that makes cosmetics mostly with argan oil, with an eco-friendly, fair trade and organic mission. And all is made in Canada, what else can you ask for?

She seems like she could enjoy a day off or two? Why not book her a full day at the spa with massages and a facial? And if you think you can pull this off, why not call her best-friend's husband and try to get the two girls at the spa the same day? :)

Or go shopping with her. Moms often put on their wish lists things that are needed instead of something they would want. How about taking them to their favourite store for some things for her for once?

On a tight budget? No problem!
You could make a gorgeous photo montage of her and her family and frame this souvenir so it will last for years to come.

Your Mom is super busy at the office? Why not make her a handmade cup with a personalized tag like ''Best Mom in the World'' with a lovely set of coffees or teas? Or you could offer her to cook the meals for diner at home for a week or two so she could take some time off and relax once she'll be home from work.

You all know your Mom favourite things and well, just make this day special for her and show her how much she means to you. Sometimes we get so busy that we forget to say something as simple as thank you for being there for me, always.

Please if you have any more ideas, feel free to share and comment! :)
Have a lovely week-end everyone!
* M * 

It's all about packaging

Hi everyone! : )

I'm super happy that I got to have two days off because of the Easter holiday at my new (and awesome) workplace.  My head is filled with new ideas for patterns and colour mixes for Spring and Summer and yesterday I got in my mailbox the new beads that I ordered, yay! I was all hyped this morning when I got up but since the sun never showed up, I won't be able to make my photoshoot today and show you some of my new designs…. :S I hope I'll have at least one day of sunshine, I can't wait to post new items, it has been way too long…! :) I have some delicious greens and luscious purple awaiting in my studio, I can't wait to share! :D

Since the time is gray and dull - but hopefully and slowly spring is getting warmer - I decided to focus on packaging. I'm always troubled on how to present Kirameku on a visual level for it's branding. This project is so dear to me, so close to my heart is seems I'm having a hard time making some basic decisions, compared with any of my customers where I always get a clear sense of which directions they are heading and have a clear idea of what they want. I guess Kirameku is really not black and white because of it's multitude of inspirations and that's very hard to depict all at once, especially since it's about both jewelry and artwork.

For now, this is the packaging I have for my earrings and rings. It's cute, but not quite where I want it yet. For my earrings I have some transparent plastic ring holders with a pearlescent sticker and a sturdy metallic box and bleu ribbon for my rings and necklaces.

I want to upgrade both my packaging for when I'll be shipping and on my table at my craft fairs this year. After all, it is all about presentation, therefore all about packaging.  I really want you guys to have a lovely experience when you'll open up the envelope from your order but I want to keep things ''simple'' if I may say, so to have as less waste as possible. I think goods are now way too over packaged. I've seen more then once two plastic bags plus a cardboard and a little foam for one simple item…! (And no it wasn't a precious and delicate item like a glass teacup that could break easily.) We have to think about our planet! I really wish I could have my thank you cards on plantable paper, but unfortunately I can't ship any seeds with Canada Post regulations - which also makes sense in a way. If ever you guys have some green ideas, please feel free to let me know! :)

Craft fair season might not be quite here yet, but it does take a little bit of planning ahead - depending on the size of the craft fair of course. My craft fairs for this year are of ''medium size'' (if I can put it that way) and I wish one day I could attend the One of a Kind Show in Toronto, but Kirameku is still too small to attends such an event. I wouldn't be able to fill their huge tables - for now. And believe me there is plenty of stock at home. I guess when you attend such shows you really need a big atelier, in any case much bigger than why I have right now. I keep my fingers crossed that temperature and time will be on our side this year as I really want to go see the event myself. It seems like a fabulous salon and I heard they have some great finds! :)

Here's a picture of my kiosque last year at Henryville at the end of the first day. As you can see there was a lot of improvement made from my first craft fair but I still have much to do! Last year I made some tiny displays out of upcycled wooden boxes and they turned out great. Next improvement : more levels! I think I need many improvements done on my presentation before I can thing about attending huge craft shows like the OOAK.

I'm hoping of having this great display for all my artwork as I want to triple my stock from last year (and it will feature the artwork I you saw in this blog post). And you can see that for now I can't really go bigger than an 8 feet table with my inventory. The tricky part is always to have something light and not too massive on your kiosque to block your client's view and with a dozen of 9x12 artowrk, it is going to be a big challenge. Oh well, let me start with the packaging and I'll get back to displays later as we go.

On this everyone, enough said about packaging and displays, it's time to go grab a bite.

On this, happy Easter everyone! :)

* M *

My Spring wish list

Hi everyone! :)

Spring is in the air even despite the pouring rain and lack of heat in Montreal. It's a time of year where everything gets in full bloom and we get that sense of renewal and are craving changes in our life (well, that's how I would describe my spring fever). May it be big or small, today I would like to present are my favourite inspirations pieces for spring 2014.

Just to add a bit of context to this list, one of my resolutions this year is to keep my consumer goods to a minimum, as we are often buying much more than what we need. For example, I would go to an art store and buy various products that I used once or that are still perfectly sealed months/years after their purchase. I did a lot of massive cleaning up in the last month and I was stunned to see how much I had. I ended up recycling, up cycling, selling or giving away a lot of items. So long story short, this is why I'm presenting you with a list of inspiration that are basic products. Everything on my list can be easily mixed and matched, upcycled into DIYs or has many uses.

Fashion picks

I'm currently obsessed with yellow and I'm sadden to see it was disregarded in the winter collection - I don't understand why, grey and yellow make such a lovely combination…! Here are favourite picks for this spring.

Coquette Dress in Mustard yellow
I love this Coquette dress in mustard yellow…! It's so versatile, you can wear it to work with a small blazer, with sparkling earrings for a date and even with a blouse underneath it when the weather is a bit cold! And did I mentioned it's handmade and has pockets….?!

Coquette Dress in Mustard by Fleet Collection. All rights reserved by Fleet Collection.

Polka dots Messenger bag
Polka dots are such a classic, especially in black and white…! They will look perfect with anything - I would even add especially with that Coquette dress!
Handmade, custom orders accepted, adjustable strap…sold!

Simon's draped shoulder's tshirt
I know many of you loved the shirt I was wearing on my first photoshoot, so here's my reference : ) (And if you love this necklace, click here for more info!)

ASOS Midi Skirt In Scuba With Full Pleats

Pleated skirts are going to be ultra in fashion this year, but what I love about them are that they are a classic in any wardrobe, just like A-line and circular skirts. Those never get out of fashion. This lovely coral tint will brighten up your day as well as your basic blouses and shirts. Combine it with a small stand up collar blouse for travelling in summer, with a turtleneck for fall or with a simple vneck thsirt for a day out with your girlfriends!

Home picks

Spring is the season for flowers and gorgeous bouquets! Here are my blooming picks for the house.

Imazinerie's wooden tissue box

Can you believe those flowers are all made out of paper….??!  It's a tissue box but it could also be used as a pencil or paintbrush holder, or to keep your loose change.

Ikea SKURAR flower pot

I simply love the lace like pattern on those! I think this gives them this little bit of chic that will make any plant look great and will hide the flower pot with elegance. They can be updated easily with spray paint and there are so many DIY to do with these if ever you do not need them as flower pots anymore.

Indigo's Glass Cloche Terrarium
I'm so in love with any glass cloche…! I love this one from Indigo as it's base makes it easy for you to find it new uses. How about a succulent garden to decorate your table at diner time or to add a touch of green in your studio? You could also use this cloche for any centrepiece for any Holidays, use it as a cupcake holder or to display any small object you would like to preserve! Tired of it's plain look? Decorate it with spray paint, washi tape and much more…! :)

Crate and Barrel's Peterboro Handmade Pie Basket

Baskets are such a classic! Instead of packing your pie or cake in a cardboard box, here's a simple solution next time you bring dessert over! How lovely would it be to have your pie inside and flowers under the lid as part of your hostess gift? This is also perfect for a small pick nick for two, road trip or for storage! : )

The luckiest girl in the world !!

Hi everyone!

I hope you all had a great week. On my side, I can say I had one of the greatest week ever!  Like some of you know, I had a lovely interview on Katie's blog on my birthday. That night I had a quiet diner at home with my lovely boyfriend and then on thursday, we went to see Marie Antoinnette ballet presented by Les Grands Ballets Canadien de Montreal, featuring the Houston Ballet as the representations started on April 9.

Delayed spring….

Hi everyone!

I was hoping I would be posting new pictures of Montreal by now along with some early flowers shots from my neighbourhood (someone here has gorgeous peonies every year), but seems like Spring took a rain check on us…. He gave us 2-3 beautiful sunny and warm days and then disappeared… O_o

My apologies, I'll have to make you wait a bit more for the pictures. Meanwhile, spring and summer are always giving me tons of ideas and inspiring me and it is actually quite hard for me to go to bed at night lol! I'm pretty sure some days my boyfriend would wish I would just settle down a bit! I'm writing them down and hopefully you will hear quite soon about these projects. For now I'm waiting a bead order that should come up pretty soon and I can't wait to have it! :) I know many of you had suggested seeing some berry bracelets and I'm working on and off on this project. It is quite harder than I thought as I do not wish to use elastics since the plastic eventually dries up and breaks. And finding the right pattern is never easy. In any cases, stay posted! :)

For now I'm breaking the cold weather with some hearty soup - just finished a homemade red and orange tomato soup yum yum - and I'm working on jewelry pieces full of colour to bring spring to my shop! But, to my boyfriend's delight, I will take a few days ''off'' soon since my birthday is coming up. And what I mean by days off is that I won't be checking my Etsy stats 3 times a day or be working on any project. But no worries, my shop will stay open and any order will be taken care of.

Also, I wish to say a big thank you to everyone who has helped during my FB giveaway and liked my page. I hope FB will provide a great venue for those who are following me. Please don't hesitate to make any suggestions, I am more than happy to tailor my posts to your liking!

I'm leaving you on my latest new piece! These glamorous earrings had been on my mind for so long, I'm very happy to see how beautiful the photoshoot turned out…! :D

On this everyone, good evening and I hope your spring is bright and sunny! : )

* M *