Thursday Blog Share: Handmade in Manitoba

Like it or not, it's time to think about Christmas shopping.  I get serious joy from doing my shopping early then relaxing as the city froths itself into a tizzy with busy malls and bumper to bumper traffic.  So it's definitely on my mind right now.

I'm also trying to make a serious effort to buy as much locally as I can.  So this post is for all your locals (or anyone else interested in what Manitoba has to offer - many of these artisans have Etsy shops and online stores).  Whenever I'm looking to find out when the next craft fair is or discover a new talent, I check out Jennifer's blog Handmade in Manitoba.

Jennifer is the true champion for shopping local.  Out of pure interest alone, she keeps an up to date calendar of craft shows and fairs, profiles new artists, products and events plus puts all Manitoba artist's blog and shop buttons on her sidebar.  I personally was so excited to have Jennifer feature Lather Creations and add my button to her site.  It's great exposure for us small businesses and craftspeople in a very targeted market.  Big thanks to Jennifer for doing this!

So if you're thinking Christmas list, pop over to Handmade in Manitoba for some great gift ideas!


Happy Thursday friends!

Etsy Love: My Wire Empire

Good morning to you! So one of the rooms in our house that is on the renovation 'to do' list is the office.  We've been holding back on this space because when we add an upstairs bathroom, odds are we will have to do some work in the ceiling of the office.  So there's no point in tackling it yet.  But that doesn't mean I don't dream about it! 

My vision is that it will be bright and organized and charming.  I also feel I can be a bit more quirky with wall art in the office than in the main living room. So I've been searching for pieces that incorporate furniture, to give me inspiration when I'm working in the office.  I stumbled across these totally adorable prints in artist Melissa Bryant's Etsy shop My Wire Empire.  Aren't they too cute?  I'm thinking about buying two or three and having a little series on my office wall.

 {All images via My Wire Empire}

I just think they are so adorable...now the hard part is picking my favourites!  Which one do you like best?  

Do you have your own home office?  If so, how did you decorate it (or is it just a pile of papers and a laptop like mine??)?

PIY Pointers: Q&A on Avoiding Brushmarks, Brush vs. Spray and Why Finishing is Smart

Happy Tuesday friends, I hope you're all doing well!  The weather took a turn for the better here and we're enjoying unusually warm temps!

Today's PIY pointers is actually a question that reader Alison sent to me about furniture painting.  I decided to turn my response into a post, in case any of you had similar burning questions!  

Here's what Allison had to say...

"This past weekend, I decided to tackle a project that's been needing some attention. I took an old wooden half moon side table, from a dark red, to a creamy white. I sanded, primed and painted (3 coats). It looks good...a lot better than what I started with, but I'm not completely happy with my painting job. I used a brush and you can still see the brush lines. I've read that to get professional results the best bet is to use spray paint or spray lacquer. I had a look at various stores and I wasn't really happy with the colour selection so I opted for the brush. Can you give me any tips on how to avoid the brush marks? Also, do you use a lacquer as a top coat? Is it meant to give the piece extra durability or just a nice shine?"

Now, I personally prefer to use a brush or a small foam roller to spraying (spray paint that is...I don't have a sprayer).  Spraying is super tricky, you have to be really patient about doing short, light sprays and it takes several coats (one false move and you have drip marks).  The colours are very limited and it's a lot more expensive since you usually need a few cans to do the job well.  So if you want to take that on - it does make a nice finish if you like that look - but I would recommend practicing on something first.

For brushstrokes - the bottom line is the better the quality the brush, the fewer the brush strokes.  Home Depot has a neat chart that shows you actual painting samples using different brushes and you can see fewer strokes with the better quality brushes.  They are more expensive - but result in a better finish.  If you're using a really good brush and still having issues, it could be your coats are too thick?  When you use less paint on your brush but do several thinner coats, I rarely have obvious brush marks (although some are always inevitable with a brush so you do have to like that look).

For top coat, I use a water-based polyurethane.  It's a clear 'diamond' coat finish that dries quickly and hardens.  I choose satin finish to minimize sheen.  Not only is it a protective coating, but it 'smoothes' out a lot of the paint imperfections.  Again, I use a brush and/or foam roller to apply, it does come in spray but it's more expensive and the same issues with drip marks.  I can't stress enough to use as little product as possible on your brush or roller, once I apply I do light sweeps with my brush or roller to soak up any excess as well.

I know I didn't give you a definitive answer, it's really about what works best for you - but hopefully this helps a bit.  Good luck Allison and the rest of you!