The Crafty Lefty

Hi folks! We're pumped to tell you that the Crafty Lefty's products are now available in another retail location -- Love Sweet Things Bakery! Stop by and you can see our all occasion gift tags, as well as Thanksgiving and Christmas gift tags. They are also selling our Thanksgiving and Christmas cake banners. Check us out at their cute bakery located at 7430 North Beach Street in Fort Worth (and pick up some of their scrumptious cupcakes to go!)

We've all been to our fair share of bridal showers and bachelorette parties for our BFFs. Tired of floral tea cups and pink tulle decor? For this bride, we chose bold colors like black, white, and gold and did a stylish, art deco twist for her special day. Black and white striped popcorn boxes holding caramel popcorn were decorated with a gold rimmed message that said, "[groom's name] POPPED the Question!' White and gold cake balls were topped with gold hearts and black and gold arrows. Ferrero Rocher chocolates were placed in champagne glasses with a wine charm in the shape of a diamond ring which was printed with the words, "He put a ring on it!" Guests were treated to a gift in the form of a chalkboard mason jar labeled with each girl's name which was filled with a manicure kit, nail polish, and metallic tattoos. Gold tissue and a black and white striped straw completed the look. (NOT PICTURED -- a table banner that was made using heavy cardstock and gold twine that said MISS --> MRS and black and gold balloons that were placed around the room.)

Stir Crazy opened a second location on Magnolia in Fort Worth today! I was delighted because 1) I absolutely love their cupcakes and other goodies and 2) because my handmade cake banners and cupcake toppers are available for sale there! My girlfriend and I visited the grand opening today and helped ourselves to some cupcakes and savory tarts. I was ecstatic to see my toppers and banners on display for purchase! If you're interested in placing an order, please visit the Shop link above. Below are pictures of my display at Stir Crazy. I made an assortment of toppers -- scrabble letters, hearts, flags, paper candles, and banners. I wanted to do something special for Robbie, the shop owner, so I made her a banner for the grand opening. She put it on a fresh batch of sprinkled cupcakes. See pics below!

The Cakeroom, a swank and Marie Antoinette-inspired cupcakery in DC is now selling The Crafty Lefty's cupcake toppers and cake banners! We are so excited to start branching out in the DC market where there are tons of cute mom-and-pop run bakeries and cake shops. If you're in the area, stop by The Cakeroom for their famous nutella chocolate chip cookies or mini banoffee pies. Yummmmmmm All of the toppers available at The Cakeroom can also be found in our Etsy shop: Love is in the Air toppers, Little Black Dress toppers, Congrats Banner, Happily Ever After toppers, and our tiny balloon toppers. Not in the DC area? No problem! Click here to purchase these cuties from our Etsy shop.

A few weeks ago, I was in Costco, and my mom and I were looking for gifts for my neice and nephew. We were strolling in the Christmas toy aisle, and I spotted the Giant Art Jar. Speaking as someone who regularly has pom poms, felt, popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners at home at any given time, I was amazed that this jar has everything you need to construct over 100 art projects with your little ones! It comes with a detailed instruction booklet, complete with color images for every craft that you can make, and EVERYTHING that you need to build these crafts. My 6 year old niece and I created some crafts from this jar last week. I let her go through the booklet and pick the craft that she wanted. She made the popsicle stick butterfly and the bird nest scene on the paper plate. (Full disclosure: I didn't have the patience to take out every single thing from the jar to see if it included glue, so I used my own glue.) She was the perfect age and temperament for these activities. I don't think kiddos under 4 (unless they're really focused and have developed their fine motor skills) would be good for this, and it's probably going to entertain kiddos all the way up to 8 or 9. I would definitely recommend this for a rainy day activity or a sunny day activity when you've run out of ideas to do with your kiddos!

Anyone that knows me knows that I love all things Paper Source. If you're lucky enough to have a store in your city -- make a trip this weekend! Besides having all sorts of really cool supplies that any crafter should have in their toolbox -- punches, stationary, stamps, etc., it also inspires me to stay creative. Sometimes, I just browse the store for their handmade crafts and take pictures on my phone. Later, I upload the pics to my Pinterest board so I have new designs to try next time I feel like being creative. I know. I sound sooo cool right now. One of their products that I love the most are their wall calendars. Specifically, their Wall Art Calendar -- it's two great products in one. When you're ready to flip to the next month, each page has a template on the back to make anything from cards to gift boxes. I tried the easiest template first -- turning the page into a file folder. Here's the print for the month of July and the template on the back. Then, I followed the instructions on the back, and cut along the solid lines. The corners are supposed to be round so instead of cutting them, I used a corner rounder tool from - you guessed it - Paper Source. In the template, it suggests that you score and fold the folder along the three dotted lines in the middle. Instead of using a bone folder (which I don't have), I just used the blade from a small pair of scissors. I didn't see why I needed three folds, so I just folded the folder in half. The final product is below. As you can see in the second image, the back of the folder will still show the calendar portion. But, I don't mind since it's on the back. I'll do another post when I use a different template in a few days. If you have this calendar at home, leave a message in the comments and tell me what template you used!

...and we're back! We took a rather long break for the holidays, but we're back just in time to wish you a Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow! Hale House on Camp Bowie in Fort Worth, TX is selling our sweet rose bobby pins and some of our Valentine's greeting cards. Stop by to check them out!

The Crafty Lefty was a part of this year's Fort Worth ArtsGoggle! It was the first time folks saw our new Holiday line and we got to meet our customers face to face! In addition to our traditional toppers and banners, we also sold greeting cards, rose bobby pins, and table banners. We are super excited to have another booth this Saturday at the Eagle Mountain Annual Fall Carnival in Fort Worth!

Our Holiday Collection is here! Cupcake toppers and banners for your holiday parties are available for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas! If you want to get these goodies, be sure to check out our Etsy shop.